Moving Tunisians from Despair to Hope

Signs of Hopelessness

Tunisia is held up as the sole success of the Arab Spring. But the freest people in the Arab world are also some of the most frustrated. Eight years after Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire, sparking the Tunisian revolution, overall hopelessness about the prospects for a better life is high and growing.

Realities of Daily Life

Why are Tunisians in such despair? Put simply, their goals—“work, freedom, and national dignity”—remain unfulfilled. The concept of work was at the heart of the revolution, with youth at the center. But in stark contrast to tremendous political progress, Tunisia continues to experience major economic and social challenges. More needs to be done to meet Tunisians’ expectations for a better life.

What Can Be Done

As Tunisia embarks on the next phase of its democratic transition, the government, civil society, and international community need to fully grasp where the country is, where it’s headed, and how to keep the transition from being derailed. To give its people real hope, Tunisia must prioritize far-reaching economic and social reforms.

For additional analysis, see the full article, “Tunisians’ Revolutionary Goals Remain Unfulfilled,” by Sarah Yerkes and Zeineb Ben Yahmed.

Sources: Survey data related to the revolution’s goals are drawn from the Afrobarometer Round 7 survey (2018), an online survey conducted by the authors (August–September 2018), and the International Republican Institute’s Public Opinion Survey of Tunisians (November–December 2017). Unless otherwise noted, see the article for the complete data sources.

1 “Family of Tunisia Woman Suicide Bomber Left Asking Why,” AFP, October 30, 2018.
2 Tunisian respondent of an online survey conducted by Carnegie between August and September 2018.
3 Karim Trabelssi, “Current State of the Informal Economy in Tunisia As Seen Through Its Stakeholders: Facts and Alternatives,” 2014; Mohamed Kerrou, “Challenges and Stakes of State and Societal Resilience in Tunisia,” 2017.
4 Kora Andrieu, et al., “The Victim Zone and Collective Reparation in Tunisia,” May 2016.
5 Tunisian respondent of an online survey conducted by Carnegie between August and September 2018.