Day: March 10, 2024

The weather is partly cloudy, getting gradually cloudy in the afternoon in north- and central-west regions with isolated and temporarily stormy rains expected locally in the east during the night. The wind is blowing west relatively strong to strong near coasts and in the south with local sandstorms and moderate elsewhere. The sea is rough to very choppy in the north and very choppy to locally rough elsewhere. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

The Global Textile and Clothing Programme (GTEX-Tunisia) has just launched a call for applications for the selection of SMEs in the Textile and Clothing sector in Tunisia, which will enjoy exclusive support from the GTEX/MENATEX II programme (2024-2027). To be selected, small and medium-sized enterprises should meet the following criteria, i.e. be -An industrial company based in Tunisia and employing fewer than 500 people; -Exporting or ready to export to international markets; -Committed to sustainable development. Companies can submit their applications online via the link below: https://surveys.intracen.org/.../G2tIYnNeTwUCZlJxXlV4S0d5cHY According to the programme, this is an opportunity for companies to grow globally while contributing to a more sustainable future. The deadline for companies to apply is March 24, 2024. The GTEX/MENATEX-Tunisia project is the result of a partnership between the Tunisian Government, the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Swedish Internation al Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), as donors, which have provided the funds needed to implement the project, and the UN International Trade Centre (ITC) and the World Trade Organisation (WTO), as the agency in charge of implementing the project. The Global Programme for Textiles and Clothing (GTEX/MENATEX) in Tunisia aims to step up export competitiveness in the textile and clothing industry. The envisaged impact of the project is to increase employment and income along the Textile and Clothing (T and C) value chain in the country. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Tunisia is hosting the first Maghreb Influencers Congress on May 10-11, with a ceremony to award the prizes for the first Maghreb Competition in this field. The Steering Committee of the Influencers International Academy (IIA) and its representatives in Tunisia, the Maghreb and the Middle East, announced on March 7 at a press conference in Tunis, that a Maghreb Competition has been launched with a TND 100,000 award for the winner from the Maghreb region. Tunisia will host this first Congress under the slogan "Content creation and influence in the era of artificial intelligence," which will be crowned by an awards ceremony for influencers, communicators, journalists and content creators from the Maghreb region in a number of economic, social and technological specialities and sectors. IIA General Coordinator Wajdi Trabelsi announced at the press conference the launch of an ambitious training programme in a number of technical and professional specialities related to content creation and public influence, co inciding with the opening of IIA offices in the North African and Middle East regions. In the era of artificial intelligence, the global content industry and the tools of digital influence are undergoing major and unprecedented transformations. This first congress, attended by experts, actors, innovators and start-ups, aims to explore and debate the major challenges and exciting opportunities arising from new technologies, artificial intelligence tools and algorithms, and their future use in the media, communications, research and marketing. During the gathering in Tunisia of opinion leaders, content creators and professionals from the Maghreb region, plenary sessions and workshops will be organised for in-depth discussion on the latest trends in the world and how to improve the uses of artificial intelligence in an ethical and effective manner. The event will also feature exhibition stands showcasing innovative technologies, products and techniques from the AI ecosystem. The congress offer the opportuni ty to interact with emerging companies and strategic partners, create a network of relationships and a platform for communication, training and exchange between the various stakeholders. A large-scale media and multi-support campaign has been undertaken in the Maghreb countries to launch the first Maghreb Competition for influencers, media professionals and content creators. Partnerships and cooperation agreements have been established with leading television channels, radio stations and media outlets in the region to ensure joint mobilisation and awareness-raising, while a group of NGOs, companies and innovative brands will support the competition, its prizes and capacity-building initiatives. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Despite the wide and varied roles played by women in fisheries, their contributions to the sector are often not captured in official statistics and can therefore go unrecognised, reinforcing existing gender inequalities and potentially leading to inadvertent discrimination, according to a recent study prepared by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). Titled "Women in fisheries in the Mediterranean and Black Sea region: roles, challenges and opportunities," this study covers five countries: Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Albania and Georgia, countries "identified as those with limited published information on this topic and thus best positioned to potentially benefit from additional research on women's participation in fisheries and to fill gaps in overall regional understanding. The study reveals that "women play active roles throughout the fisheries value chain in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, including particip ating in pre-harvest activities like vessel and gear construction and maintenance, harvest activities both on board fishing vessels and from shore, and post-harvest activities such as sorting, cleaning, processing and marketing the catch, as well as in activities associated with running the fishing business, such as bookkeeping." Furthermore, women are actively engaged throughout the region in fisheries research and fisheries administrations. According to the interviews carried out in Tunisia, "many women work from their home in the design and reassembly of fishing nets. In some regions of Tunisia, there are women who perform coastal fishing, from the shore (e.g. as gleaners or clam collectors) or on boats, sometimes with their husbands and other times on their own.There are also examples of women taking over for their husbands to perform vessel-based fishing activities in case their husbands fall ill or are no longer able to fish. "Also in Tunisia, women commonly work as manual workers in the processing of tuna and sardines and many women work in fisheries related research and fisheries monitoring roles." "In Tunisia, in recent years, more and more women are taking on prominent positions as regional managers and fisheries wardens, or at research institutes," the study points out. the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean estimates the number of artisanal fishermen in Tunisia at 35,450, accounting for around 70% of the workforce in the fishing sector. Updated statistics on the number of women in the sector are still lacking. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

The weather on Sunday night is sometime very cloudy with scattered and temporarily stormy rains expected in the north. The wind is blowing west relatively strong near coasts, on heights and in the south, light to moderate elsewhere. Highs range between 7°C and 11°C in the north and on heights and between 13°C and 18°C elsewhere. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse