The volume of Turkish investments in Tunisia, which currently stands at around $700 million, is expected to increase in the coming period, Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat said on Tuesday. The volume of trade between Turkey and Tunisia reached $1.6 billion in 2023, while Turkish contractors have implemented 21 projects worth $975 million in Tunisia so far, according to a statement by the Turkish Ministry of Trade last Saturday.
Speaking at a press conference held at the headquarters of the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts (UTICA) at the end of the 2nd Tunisian-Turkish Business and Investment Forum, he added that Turkey is ready to develop the volume of trade with Tunisia to reach $3 billion, compared to the current $1.6 billion.
Minister of Trade and Export Development, Kalthoum Ben Rejeb, affirmed that trade between Tunisia and Turkey is now based on a new approach, namely on the close link between trade and investment and between investment and sustainable development, while relying on direct investment, particularly in sectors with high employment and high added value.
She stressed that the regularisation of the free trade agreement between Tunisia and Turkey, adopted by the government on December 4, aims to highlight the link between trade and investment.
This regularisation made it possible to decide on the organisation of a Tunisian-Turkish Business and Partnership Forum, which will be held annually and will aim to promote investment.
The minister explained that this meeting is part of the follow-up to the points adopted during the first meeting of this forum held in Istanbul on June 5.
She also affirmed that the forum defines the areas of private investment in the two countries, specifying that the textile, leather, steel, shipbuilding and agro-food sectors are the first sectors to attract Turkish investments in Tunisia.
