The number of unemployed people identified by the INS of Tunisia during the 1st quarter of 2023 reached more than 655,000 people against nearly 625,000 in the fourth quarter of 2022.
The unemployment rate in Tunisia reached 16.1% during the first quarter of 2023 against 15.2% during the fourth quarter of 2022. This is according to data published by the National Institute of Statistics (INS) , Monday, May 15.
According to the document, the number of registered unemployed during the same period reached more than 655,000 people against nearly 625,000 in the fourth quarter of 2022. This represents an increase of around 4.8% over the period studied.
“ By gender, the unemployment rate is up for both men (13.9% versus 12.9% in Q4 2022) and women (21.2% versus 20.1% in Q4 2022)” , specifies the information note.
This rise in unemployment is partly explained by the drop in the activity rate of the Tunisian population over the same period. According to the INS, this rate fell during the first quarter of 2023 by an estimated 0.5 points, to reach 46%, after being around 46.5% during the fourth quarter of 2022.
For several years, the North African country has been facing many socio-economic tensions. Negotiations initiated by Tunis for the granting of a $1.9 billion loan from the IMF are stalling despite an agreement in principle in October 2022. This situation hinders Tunisia’s access to aid from its other partners.
According to the outlook of the IMF, the Tunisian economy should experience a growth of 1.3% in 2023 compared to 2.5 in 2022 while inflation should climb to 10.9% against 8.3% over the same period.
