Day: April 13, 2017

Tunisia: ‘Sound of Stones’ fest to open in Dougga

BGMN

A techno music festival will be held on April 29-30 amid the ancient ruins of the city of Dougga (formerly Thugga), in north-west Tunisia, a UNESCO world heritage site. The ”Dougga Fest – Sound of Stones” is organized by the international festival association of Dougga, with the patronage of the Culture Ministry and the support of the Tunisian Tourism Ministry. Organizers say the event vies to promote the north-west area of Tunisia, the archaeological site and city of Dougga while safeguarding the environment. It also aims to create jobs for…

Tunisia: 330 Russian tourists arrives in Djerba

BGMN

Some 330 tourists, including 30 representatives of travel agencies arrived on Wednesday in the Djerba-Zarzis international airport. This tour organized by tour operator “Anex Tours” is part of a promotional campaign of the Tunisian tourist destination, according to Jawhara FM. Last year Tunisia was visited by 625,000 Russian tourists”, according to Tunisia’s Ministry of Tourism. It was reported, that in 2016 the flow of tourists from Russia was 137% more than in 2014. MNHN  

Tunisian General Labour Union optimistic after meeting with IMF delegation

BGMN

Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT) Secretary-General Noureddine Tabboubi told media on Thursday that his meeting with the delegation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)  “gave positive messages to overcome the difficulties of the Tunisian economy”. “Things are now clearer and all the indicators point to the best. There is a positive development of their opinion and they have made promises to facilitate the release of the loan,” he said, stressing that “the time has come for the national community to come out of its coma and to act to produce our…

Algeria Struggles to Catch up with Neighbors on Islamic Finance

BGMN

Battered by the oil price slump, the underdeveloped banking sector in Algeria sees new financing sources in Islamic finance to tap into the huge informal economy and catch up with Morocco and Tunisia, which have already allowed such participatory banks to operate. As it edges towards offering banking services to suit more religiously conservative investors, Algeria wants Islamic banks to attract funds from a huge pool of cash held outside the formal banking system in a bid to offset oil prices and its energy revenues, Reuters reported. On the footsteps…

Some Arab governments are rethinking harsh cannabis laws

BGMN

“WHEN we think about our future, our dreams, we have nothing,” says a young man in Sidi Bouzid. Life in the Tunisian town that launched the Arab spring has barely changed since the country’s old dictator, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, was ousted in 2011. Unemployment is even higher nationally than before the uprising. Young people are worst-off, which helps explain why an alarming number join jihadist groups. The frustration drives others, including this young man, to use zatla, the local name for cannabis. Using cannabis in Tunisia, though, is risky.…