Tunisia

Tunisia: steady but modest growth, 1980–2025

Export-oriented manufacturing and tourism drove growth before the 2011 revolution that ended the Ben Ali era; political instability and recurring fiscal crises have weighed on the economy since. Between 1980 and 2025, Tunisia's GDP per capita grew from $1,324 to $4,657 (current US$), a compound annual growth rate of 2.8% — steady but modest growth. Annual GDP growth averaged 3.3% with a year-to-year standard deviation of 3.0 points, reflecting relatively stable macroeconomic conditions. Structurally, agriculture's share of the economy moved from 14.1% to 10.3% of GDP (a classic decline as the economy industrialized/modernized), while services rose from 41.3% to 62.7% of GDP, underscoring a shift toward a services-driven economy. On human development, life expectancy rose from 63.7 to 76.7 years, while tertiary school enrollment moved from 4.8% to 38.1%, while the urban population share grew from 51.6% to 70.7%.

What this growth cost: Growth was not without cost: per-capita CO2 emissions rose from 1.43 to 2.62 tonnes CO2e per person; income inequality (Gini index) narrowed from 43.4 to 33.7; the poverty headcount ratio fell from 21.6% to 0.7%.