Medical tourism in Tunisia is considered one of the promising sectors, with seven spa resorts with mineral waters, 60 thalassotherapy centers, and more than 340 freshwater treatment centers.
According to official data, more than two million foreigners of different nationalities seek treatment each year in Tunisia.
This is why Tunisia represents a privileged destination for French tourists in the first place. In second place are Algerians, Libyans, and the British, and a significant proportion of tourists from Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, many of whom flock from Ivory Coast, Senegal, Mali, and Burkina Faso …
The Tunisian authorities want to profit from medical tourism, one of the few thriving sectors of the local and international economy.
Ranked 2nd in Africa in terms of health indicators and 1st in terms of medical tourism, Tunisia would benefit from developing this last niche which constitutes a real economic engine and a real export niche.
In 2017, more than five hundred thousand foreign tourists chose the destination for medical reasons.
In 2019, there were more than two million foreign tourists, including North Africans who chose the Tunisian destination for the same reason and in particular for the thalassotherapy resorts.
This sector stands out for the presence of numerous financial and tax incentives and advantages because it represents a priority sector for the State.
A place of choice in thalassotherapy
The Minister of Health, Ali Mrabet, recently highlighted the role of the National Authority for Health Evaluation and Accreditation in guaranteeing the quality and safety of health services offered to the population.
He stressed that Tunisia occupies a prominent place in the thalassotherapy sector, enabling it to become a regional reference platform in the field of investment and export of health services.
And to ensure that medical tourism constitutes nearly half of tourism revenue, stressing that this initiative aims to further strengthen this sector through the development and export of services to contribute to making Tunisia the leading tourism destination. medical for Europeans by 2034.
High skills and developed infrastructure
Tunisia has 50 hydrotherapy centers, 30 traditional Moorish baths, more than 60 thalassotherapy centers, and 18 geothermal springs with 100 clinics offering treatments for tourists.
In this context, Minister of Tourism Mohamed Moez Belhassin affirms that medical tourism in Tunisia is experiencing development despite the global health crisis, because Tunisia is an important player in the global market, and aspires to increase the number of foreign clients coming for medical services, thanks to to to world-renowned Tunisian skills and appropriate and modern infrastructure.
The process of promoting the sector requires facilitation on several levels, including accelerating the adoption of electronic travel visas.
