13/10/2026

Launched on Wednesday 30 September in Tunis by the Agency for the Promotion of Industry and Innovation (APII), the new national programme to support businesses in their transition to Industry 4.0 serves to enhance Tunisia’s industrial appeal to foreign investors by promoting the adoption of smart technologies, the modernisation of production processes and skills development.

Indeed, in Tunisia, the roll-out of new Industry 4.0 systems in 2026 marks the start of a new phase, with one key challenge: to translate technological advances into productivity gains and investments with higher added value.

This development is taking place against a backdrop of increased regional competition to attract industrial investment, where countries’ ability to integrate new production technologies is gradually becoming a key differentiating factor.

A national scheme that is going from strength to strength
Tunisia’s transition to Industry 4.0, which has been underway since 2018, forms part of the Industrial and Innovation Strategy for 2035.
The country now has five operational centres of excellence. Nearly 400 businesses have received support and more than 2,900 professionals have been trained.
The launch of the National Industry 4.0 Hub in December 2025, followed by the roll-out of the Industry 4.0 Label and the TIMA assessment platform in 2026, aims to further structure the support provided to manufacturers.

Adoption remains uneven
According to the second Industry 4.0 Barometer (2024), which surveyed 203 business leaders and executives, 38 per cent of the companies surveyed were discussing an Industry 4.0 strategy, compared with 5 per cent that had finalised one and 14 per cent that had already begun implementing it.
The cost of investment is a major obstacle for 39 per cent of respondents. SMEs continue to face particular challenges in terms of financing and access to skills.

A challenge for the competitiveness of FDI
With FDI stock standing at 52,950 million dinars by the end of 2025, of which 31,664 million is in industry, technological modernisation represents a potential driver for consolidating foreign operations.
Automation, data analytics and predictive maintenance can improve industrial performance, support business expansion and encourage the integration of higher value-added functions.
This development could also strengthen links between foreign companies and Tunisian suppliers.

Moving from measures to outcomes
The next step will be to measure the tangible effects of this transition: investments made, productivity gains, skilled jobs created and reinvestment plans.

The TIMA (Tunisian Intelligent Manufacturing Assessment) platform, which APII executives were introduced to during their training in October, could contribute to this monitoring by assessing companies’ digital maturity and identifying their technological needs.

For Tunisia, the challenge now is to align its Industry 4.0 policy with its investment promotion policy, in order to strengthen the competitiveness of established businesses and enhance the economic benefits of FDI for the local productive sector.

Ms Ihsen Mahmoudi – FIPA-Tunisia