The Tunisian government is calling for a shift from a logic of “immediate correction” to long-term planning, involving increased accountability for managers and a transformation of management culture.
Tunisian state-owned enterprises continue to face significant financial constraints and persistent dependence on the state, while the authorities now want to prioritize their restructuring, autonomy, and long-term planning, with the 2026-2030 Development Plan as the ultimate goal.
Public-owned enterprises remain one of the main challenges facing Tunisian finances, despite reforms undertaken to improve their governance and performance. President Kais Saied has consistently ruled out their sale or marginalisation, considering them an element of national heritage and economic sovereignty. The official approach thus prioritises their restructuring and development, with the aim of preserving their economic role while gradually reducing the burden
they place on public finances.
However, this strategy is encountering long-standing weaknesses.
According to La Presse de Tunisie, many public enterprises remain unable to generate sufficient revenue to finance their development and achieve genuine financial autonomy. The reforms implemented have not yet succeeded in sustainably reversing this situation, even as the state simultaneously seeks to strengthen governance, accountability, and performance mechanisms.
The burden of debt is one of the main obstacles. The interconnected liabilities between the state, public enterprises, banks, and social security funds make balance sheet improvement particularly complex.
This interdependence limits budgetary flexibility and slows the restructuring of a sector whose difficulties can also be transmitted to the banking system and public finances. In a context of constrained budgetary resources, the state’s capacity to provide sustained support to loss-making companies appears increasingly limited.
Beyond financial constraints, the debate now centres on their management methods. Analysts quoted by the newspaper believe that some companies continue to prioritize addressing emergencies at the expense of genuine strategic planning.
This shift requires, in particular, governance reform, skills development, and increased investment in training and human capital.
The stated objective is to enable public enterprises to develop their self-financing capacity and reduce their dependence on government budgetary interventions.
The challenge takes on a new dimension with the 2026-2030 Development Plan. The projections cited anticipate that public enterprises will contribute 30% of the total planned investments.
MK/Sf/fss/as/APA