Tunisia: The private sector is becoming more involved in employment.
21 October 2011
Read by 1502 persons
“Employment Month” was successful, contrary to expectations. Started a month before the first elections in the country, some found the idea unrealistic, even risky. But the Ministry of Professional Training and Employment, together with the Ministry of Regional Development, succeeded. The private sector, previously reluctant to participate in such initiatives, responded positively.
As a result, ten partnership agreements were signed with private sector companies, committing them to creating 7,850 jobs during the 2011-2013 period. This effort will be continued through similar agreements. “These agreements represent a three-year recruitment plan. What we noticed from the start is that there are unmet needs in the job market regarding supply,” stated Saïd Aydi, Minister of Professional Training and Employment, at the press conference held on October 18, 2011 to present the results of “Employment Month.”
Agreements...
Three agreements were signed during “Employment Month.” The first with the Technical Center for Building Materials, Ceramics and Glass (CTMCCV), which plans to create 64 jobs in 2011, 63 in 2012 and 63 in 2013. The second with DYTECH, specialized in manufacturing and trading swimming pools for the European market, which prepared a recruitment plan for 200 people, including 123 in 2012.
The third agreement was signed with the Poulina Group, providing for the creation of 2,105 jobs for executives, senior technicians, technicians and workers: 300 in 2011, 800 in 2012 and 1,005 in 2013. The group also indicated its needs for interns of all categories, distributed between 65, 120 and 190 over the same period.
The remaining eight agreements were signed on October 18, 2011. The German company Kromberg & Schubert, specializing in the manufacture of automotive cables, plans to create 3,000 jobs for the 2011-2012 period. The second agreement concerns COFAT, specializing in automotive wiring harnesses, creating 500 jobs in 2011-2012.
The Tunisian-German company DEMAT, operating in the aeronautics industry, is committed to creating a hundred positions while PIRECO plans 90 in 2012. The same for Top Service, operating in the field of IT equipment and services, planning the creation of 20 jobs. SOTIP, specializing in precision sheet metal work, plans to create 60 jobs between 2011 and 2012. Zodiac Aerospace Tunisia, specializing in aeronautics, plans to create 736 jobs in 2011 and 440 in 2012, for a total of 1,176 positions.
Restructuring...
At the end of June 2011, the National Institute of Statistics recorded 705,000 unemployed people in Tunisia. The Employment Ministry's projections are to reduce this figure to 650,000 or 660,000 by creating nearly 50,000 jobs by the end of the year. However, resolving the employment problem still requires time. Between three and five years, according to Mr. Aydi, who adds that it is essential to begin restructuring the National Agency for Independent Work and the Tunisian Agency for Vocational Training.
Abderrazek Zouari, Minister of Regional Development, reiterated the importance of transforming regions into employment pools by creating economic regions with development potential. “The most important reform and the most imminent challenge of regional development is to generate job-creating regions,” he insists.
Challenges...
The challenge facing the future government is significant: regional economic imbalance, qualitative imbalance in the job market, 200,000 unemployed graduates, and a negative image of the private sector that needs to be changed. According to Faiza Kallel, an official at the Ministry of Professional Training and Employment, unemployed young people have a negative perception of the private sector, synonymous with exploitation.
The government made an additional effort this year by creating 20,000 positions in the civil service compared to only 8,000 previously. The greatest responsibility rests with the private sector, which has significant development potential. It is certain that the 7,850 recruitment “intentions” are far from meeting the demands in a saturated job market, and will be even more so in one, two, or three years if structural solutions are not implemented.
Furthermore, political choices interfere with the implementation of job market regulation mechanisms. Employment will, however, remain a priority for the future government in the coming years. Meeting the employment challenge means meeting the challenge of regional development and the restructuring of the Tunisian economy.
Maha Ouelhezi
Webmanagercenter.com
Published October 19, 2011.
Posted online October 21, 2011.
As a result, ten partnership agreements were signed with private sector companies, committing them to creating 7,850 jobs during the 2011-2013 period. This effort will be continued through similar agreements. “These agreements represent a three-year recruitment plan. What we noticed from the start is that there are unmet needs in the job market regarding supply,” stated Saïd Aydi, Minister of Professional Training and Employment, at the press conference held on October 18, 2011 to present the results of “Employment Month.”
Agreements...
Three agreements were signed during “Employment Month.” The first with the Technical Center for Building Materials, Ceramics and Glass (CTMCCV), which plans to create 64 jobs in 2011, 63 in 2012 and 63 in 2013. The second with DYTECH, specialized in manufacturing and trading swimming pools for the European market, which prepared a recruitment plan for 200 people, including 123 in 2012.
The third agreement was signed with the Poulina Group, providing for the creation of 2,105 jobs for executives, senior technicians, technicians and workers: 300 in 2011, 800 in 2012 and 1,005 in 2013. The group also indicated its needs for interns of all categories, distributed between 65, 120 and 190 over the same period.
The remaining eight agreements were signed on October 18, 2011. The German company Kromberg & Schubert, specializing in the manufacture of automotive cables, plans to create 3,000 jobs for the 2011-2012 period. The second agreement concerns COFAT, specializing in automotive wiring harnesses, creating 500 jobs in 2011-2012.
The Tunisian-German company DEMAT, operating in the aeronautics industry, is committed to creating a hundred positions while PIRECO plans 90 in 2012. The same for Top Service, operating in the field of IT equipment and services, planning the creation of 20 jobs. SOTIP, specializing in precision sheet metal work, plans to create 60 jobs between 2011 and 2012. Zodiac Aerospace Tunisia, specializing in aeronautics, plans to create 736 jobs in 2011 and 440 in 2012, for a total of 1,176 positions.
Restructuring...
At the end of June 2011, the National Institute of Statistics recorded 705,000 unemployed people in Tunisia. The Employment Ministry's projections are to reduce this figure to 650,000 or 660,000 by creating nearly 50,000 jobs by the end of the year. However, resolving the employment problem still requires time. Between three and five years, according to Mr. Aydi, who adds that it is essential to begin restructuring the National Agency for Independent Work and the Tunisian Agency for Vocational Training.
Abderrazek Zouari, Minister of Regional Development, reiterated the importance of transforming regions into employment pools by creating economic regions with development potential. “The most important reform and the most imminent challenge of regional development is to generate job-creating regions,” he insists.
Challenges...
The challenge facing the future government is significant: regional economic imbalance, qualitative imbalance in the job market, 200,000 unemployed graduates, and a negative image of the private sector that needs to be changed. According to Faiza Kallel, an official at the Ministry of Professional Training and Employment, unemployed young people have a negative perception of the private sector, synonymous with exploitation.
The government made an additional effort this year by creating 20,000 positions in the civil service compared to only 8,000 previously. The greatest responsibility rests with the private sector, which has significant development potential. It is certain that the 7,850 recruitment “intentions” are far from meeting the demands in a saturated job market, and will be even more so in one, two, or three years if structural solutions are not implemented.
Furthermore, political choices interfere with the implementation of job market regulation mechanisms. Employment will, however, remain a priority for the future government in the coming years. Meeting the employment challenge means meeting the challenge of regional development and the restructuring of the Tunisian economy.
Maha Ouelhezi
Webmanagercenter.com
Published October 19, 2011.
Posted online October 21, 2011.
