The authoroties in Tunisia have announced the delivery phase for several major infrastructure projects in 2026, but financing arrangements and implementation timelines remain largely undefined.
They stated that 2026 will mark the transition to a construction phase for several large-scale infrastructure projects — particularly in rail and air transport — according to official statements carried by the local press.
The projects cited include a high-speed train linking the north and south of the country, a high-performance rail corridor, an expansion of Tunis-Carthage International Airport and the development of new port and logistics infrastructure.
The push is framed within the 2026–2030 development plan and comes after several years during which these same projects have been repeatedly flagged in government plans without ever reaching the operational stage. Authorities are now presenting this moment as the start of a genuine delivery phase, aimed at modernising national infrastructure and supporting economic growth.
In official statements, President Kaïs Saïed called for the accelerated implementation of these projects to move from plans to tangible outcomes. A restricted ministerial council dedicated to major infrastructure was reportedly instructed to fast-track administrative and technical procedures in order to clear the way for their launch.
Among the headline initiatives is a high-speed rail project paired with a rail corridor connecting several regions of the country, designed to strengthen territorial continuity from north to south. The proposed route would include connections to major urban centres and logistics hubs. However, no detailed construction timeline or official estimate of the overall cost of the rail project has been provided at this stage.
The only project for which a figure has been disclosed is the expansion of Tunis-Carthage International Airport. According to the authorities, the investment program included in the Civil Aviation and Airports Authority’s 2026 budget sets aside an estimated 3 billion dinars (approximately 900 million euros) to increase the airport’s annual passenger capacity from 5 million to 18.5 million by 2031. Authorities also confirmed that plans for an entirely new airport have been shelved in favour of the expansion.
MK/ak/lb/as/APA