Tunisia

Capital and largest city (2013 est.): Tunis, 2,321,227 (metro. area), 651,183 (city proper)
Monetary unit: Tunisian dinar
Tunisian Republic
National name: Al-Jumhuriyah at-Tunisiyah
Languages: Arabic (official, commerce), French (commerce), Berber (Tamazight)
Ethnicity/race: Arab-Berber 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1%
Religions: Islam (Sunni) 99.1%, other (includes Christian, Jewish, Shia Muslim, and Baha’i) 1%
Literacy rate: 79.1% (2010 est.)
Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2013 est.): $108.4 billion; per capita $9,900. Real growth rate: 2.8%. Inflation: 6.1%. Unemployment: 17.2%. Arable land: 17.35%. Agriculture: olives, olive oil, grain, tomatoes, citrus fruit, sugar beets, dates, almonds; beef, dairy products. Labor force: 3.974 million (2013 est.); services 49.8%, industry 31.9%, agriculture 18.3% (2009 est.). Industries: petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate and iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, agribusiness, beverages. Natural resources: petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt. Exports: $17.46 billion (2013 est.): clothing, semi-finished goods, and textiles, agricultural products, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, hydrocarbons, electrical equipment. Imports: $24.95 billion (2013 est.): textiles, machinery, and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, foodstuffs. Major trading partners: France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Libya, China, Algeria, U.S. (2012).
Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.105 million (2012); mobile cellular: 12.84 million (2012). Radio broadcast stations: broadcast media is mainly government-controlled; the state-run Tunisian Radio and Television Establishment (ERTT) operates 2 national TV networks, several national radio networks, and a number of regional radio stations; 1 TV and 3 radio stations are privately-owned and report domestic news stories directly from the official Tunisian news agency; the state retains control of broadcast facilities and transmitters through L’Office National de la Telediffusion; Tunisians also have access to Egyptian, pan-Arab, and European satellite TV channels (2007). Radios: 2.06 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 26 (plus 76 repeaters) (1995). Televisions: 920,000 (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 576 (2012). Internet users: 3.5 million (2009).
Transportation: Railways: total: 2,165 km (2011). Highways: total: 19,418 km; paved: 14,756 km; unpaved: 4,662 km (2010). Ports and harbors: Bizerte, Gabes, Rades, Sfax, Sousse. Airports: 29 (2013).

Fun Facts

• Tunis is situated on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. The area commonly called the old city of Medina.
• The Sahel, a broadening coastal plain along Tunisia’s eastern Mediterranean coast, is among the world’s premier areas of olive cultivation.
• Tunisia has only ever had five presidents.
• Tunis is currently the only town in Tunisia to be equipped with a metro (“tube”) service, which is more like a tramway.
• Tunisia has served as a popular location for some of Hollywood’s biggest films, among which include Star Wars, Jesus of Nazareth, The English Patient and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
• In the Matmata area of Tunisia, people still live in underground houses.
• In Tunisia, women can pass on their names and nationalities to their children.