On 12 April 2024, Visteon Tunisia, which specialises in electronic automotive components, inaugurated a new unit in Bir El Bey, Tunisia, in the presence of Sachin Lawande, Group Executive Director.

The new unit was set up by 100% Tunisian skills in the space of ten months, with a 60% integration rate, to create 400 additional jobs by 2024. The new plant is expected to create 1,000 direct jobs and 3,500 indirect jobs by 2028, at an investment cost of $50 million.

The Visteon Tunisia group is an exporting company that has been operating in Tunisia since 1991, manufacturing automotive electronic components and employing 350 people.

Headquartered in Van Buren Township, Michigan in the United States of America, Visteon is present in 17 countries around the world, where it employs 10,000 people. At the end of 2023, Visteon had annual sales of approximately USD 3.95 billion and had recorded USD 7.2 billion in new business.

The Japanese giant and global leader, Sumitomo, has begun construction on its third automotive wiring harness factory in Tunisia, following the installations in Jendouba and El-Fejja. The new production unit, Sumitomo Electric Bordnetze Tunisia, will focus on manufacturing wiring harnesses for Mercedes electric vehicles. It will be located in the Ertiyah 2 industrial zone in Jendouba, covering a total area of ​​10 hectares, with 5 hectares being covered.
The investment in this new factory will amount to 91 million Tunisian dinars (MDT), and production is expected to start in 2025, creating 1,920 jobs. The inauguration and monitoring of Sumitomo’s activities were marked by the on-site visit of the Japanese Ambassador to Tunisia, Takeshi Osuga, the CEO of Fipa, Jalel Tebib, the President of the Industrial Land Agency (Afi), Kais Mejri, and the CEO of the Tunisian-Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Nacef Belkhiria.

The Swiss group Zühlke Engineering, which specialises in strategy, innovation and the development of digital solutions and applications, has decided to set up in Tunisia, according to Predrag Poposki, the group’s projects and investment manager, at a meeting on Wednesday with Jalel Tebib, Director General of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA Tunisia).

“In the immediate future, Zühlke Engineering, which has operations in around ten countries, plans to recruit around thirty Tunisian engineers in specialised fields, with a view to doubling this number in the medium term,” FIPA said in a press release issued in Tunis on Thursday.

The decision to locate in Tunisia was based on a number of factors, including the availability of engineering talent, strategic positioning, proximity and cultural diversity, added Poposki.

For his part, Tebib congratulated the representative of Zühlke Engineering on his choice of Tunisia, while confirming that the specific features of the Tunisian business climate and the regulatory framework for investment militate in favour of such a decision.

The CEO of FIPA also presented the role of FIPA-Tunisia in terms of advice, guidance and assistance, reiterating the commitment of the Agency’s team to monitor the establishment of Zühlke in Tunisia under the best possible conditions.

According to the BMI Tunisia Country Risk Report, Q2 2024, forecasts indicate a modest improvement in real GDP growth from 0.5% in 2023 to 1.3% in 2024, driven by factors such as increased household consumption and controlled import growth. According to BMI’s Tunisia Country Risk Report for the second quarter of 2024, forecasts point to a modest improvement in real GDP growth from 0.5% in 2023 to 1.3% in 2024, supported by factors such as an increase in household consumption and restrained import growth. The diversification of the economy through services, agriculture and manufacturing contributes to its stability.

In addition, the BMI report mentions that Tunisia’s high level of human capital development and its geographical proximity to European markets make it an attractive destination for foreign investment, particularly in sectors such as energy. The report also points out that long-term growth opportunities exist in sectors such as tourism, subject to sustained security and sufficient foreign investment. Reform efforts, supported by organizations such as the IMF, have the potential to improve investor confidence and unlock financing from bilateral and multilateral sources.

Despite recent constitutional changes, the Tunisia Country Risk Report highlights Tunisia’s reputation as the only democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring that continues to facilitate access to international aid, loans and investment, notably from the EU. Closer ties with wealthier markets, such as the Gulf Cooperation Council, offer prospects for financial support and investment, contributing to economic growth and job creation. Overall, despite persistent challenges, Tunisia’s economic outlook remains promising, underpinned by ongoing reforms and strategic partnerships.

Download the report: Tunisia-CountryRiskReport

BMI, affiliated to the Fitch rating group, recently published its quarterly report for the second quarter of 2024, entitled “Tunisia Country Risk ReportIncludes 10-year forecasts to 2033”, offering an in-depth analysis of the economic and political situation in the country.
According to the report’s projections, real GDP growth in Tunisia is expected to show a slight improvement, rising from around 0.5% in 2023 to 1.3% in 2024. This increase is mainly attributed to a slight increase in household consumption, controlled growth in imports and a moderate easing of pressures on government liquidity.
The report offers a comprehensive analysis of political, financial and economic risks, including BMI’s fundamental points of view, 10-year forecasts, the economic risk index, the political stability and risk index, the long-term political outlook, the SWOT analysis and detailed sections on the structural economy.

The first subsidiary of “ETILOG”, based in Presov, Slovakia, and specialized in the manufacture of special packaging for the automotive and aerospace industries, will soon be set up in the Sbikha2 industrial zone in Kairouan (central Tunisia). The first phase will create 210 jobs, according to the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA-Tunisie).
In anticipation of this imminent establishment, the first of its kind in Africa, a delegation from this company, European leader in packaging systems with 3 production sites in Eastern Europe, recently visited Tunisia to “pursue discussions concerning the progress of the implementation of its subsidiary”, indicated the same source on Monday.
ETILOG is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of special packaging for the automotive and aerospace industries.
The automotive components industry is a fast-growing sector and one of the pillars of the Tunisian economy.
Today, Tunisia has around 200 companies active in the automotive sector, generating 16% of the country’s exports. In recent years, the automotive components sector, with its electrical and electronics branch, has become the leading industrial sector for foreign direct investment.