Tunisia’s extensive social expenditure has proven to be both unfair and inefficient, further worsening the country’s financial problems. However, this substantial spending has allowed Saied’s regime to buy time and keep the country afloat until the elections. Now that the elections are over, persisting with this approach risks fueling a vicious cycle that could lead to social instability.
A conversation about the recent elections in Tunisia, their lack of credibility, how they have been received by U.S. and other foreign officials, and what they say about the trajectory of democracy, both in Tunisia and elsewhere in the Middle East.
Kais Saied has chipped away at a decade of progress, but a few factors offer hope for the country’s democratic future.
Tunisia’s vulnerability to financial crisis is clear from its economic performance in 2023. How can the country pull itself back from the edge?
As Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed embarks on his second term, he is facing an increasingly hostile public that is growing more impatient with his inability to address the country’s myriad economic challenges.
Russia’s outreach to the region has successfully exploited regimes’ frustrations with the West. Yet it has encountered difficulties in navigating the complex interrelations and rivalries.
In the longer term, officials can take various steps to help restore Tunisia’s economic growth, stability, and security.
