A Little-Known Fact About Tunisian Industry: Technological Development and Innovation
26 October 2010
Read by 1638 persons
The 2nd edition of the Creation and Technological Development Fair and the Euro-Mediterranean Colloquium on Innovation, organized under the High Patronage of His Excellency the President of the Republic, aims to illustrate, through booths and conferences, a little-known reality of Tunisian industry: its technological development and innovations.
Indeed, while it is known that Tunisian industry exports—it is even the leading exporting industry in the Southern Mediterranean, and the year 2010 will exceed the most optimistic forecasts with nearly 20% growth in exports—what is less known is that Tunisian industry is innovating and has been undergoing a profound technological transformation for the past fifteen years.
Do you know, in fact, that this remarkable quantitative evolution of exports, which more than quadrupled between 1995 and 2010 (going from 4 to 18 billion dinars), has been accompanied by an equally remarkable evolution of their technological content, which increased from 12% in 1995 to 30% in 2009?
Do you also know that the latest survey monitoring the upgrading program carried out by the IEQ highlighted the fact that nearly half of the companies are carrying out innovations in one form or another?
Thus, out of a sample of 400 companies, 47% are carrying out product innovations, 66% process innovations, 47% marketing innovations, etc.
The reference document that we are publishing on this occasion, with its 45 success stories, provides a concrete illustration of these innovations.
Do you also know that many of our companies are approved as Tier 1 designers by international automobile manufacturers, or suppliers of finished textile products by large European distributors?
The latest DAVOS report confirms all these performances by ranking Tunisia 31st in the world in terms of innovation.
Nevertheless, these results should not mask the technological gaps to be filled in our industrial fabric, as highlighted by the 2016 industry strategy study, which identified the 21 key technologies to be mastered and promoted.
It is to strengthen these achievements and fill these gaps that the Presidential Program "Together, let's meet the challenges" has set ambitious objectives for the technological development of Tunisian industry.
Thus, industrial exports should reach 25 billion dinars and, above all, the share of technological activities in these exports should increase to 50% in 2014.
To achieve these objectives, a strategy and an action plan for the technological development of Tunisian industry are being implemented through a large number of support programs and structures that will be presented during these two days and that we can summarize very briefly around the following four main axes:
1 - Strengthening Technological Infrastructure, Clusters, Technical Centers, Laboratories (1000 million dinars of planned investments)
2 - Developing University-Business networks through clusters, incubators, and large companies. More than 300 companies and 70 training and research institutions are currently involved.
3 - Setting up specific financing mechanisms for innovative projects with two funds created in 2010, In'tech and Tahil'invest, which complement existing mechanisms.
4 - Implementing an ambitious Program to Promote Tunisian Industry & Technology, mobilizing all stakeholders.
Published October 12, 2010
Posted online October 19, 2010
leaders.com.tn
Indeed, while it is known that Tunisian industry exports—it is even the leading exporting industry in the Southern Mediterranean, and the year 2010 will exceed the most optimistic forecasts with nearly 20% growth in exports—what is less known is that Tunisian industry is innovating and has been undergoing a profound technological transformation for the past fifteen years.
Do you know, in fact, that this remarkable quantitative evolution of exports, which more than quadrupled between 1995 and 2010 (going from 4 to 18 billion dinars), has been accompanied by an equally remarkable evolution of their technological content, which increased from 12% in 1995 to 30% in 2009?
Do you also know that the latest survey monitoring the upgrading program carried out by the IEQ highlighted the fact that nearly half of the companies are carrying out innovations in one form or another?
Thus, out of a sample of 400 companies, 47% are carrying out product innovations, 66% process innovations, 47% marketing innovations, etc.
The reference document that we are publishing on this occasion, with its 45 success stories, provides a concrete illustration of these innovations.
Do you also know that many of our companies are approved as Tier 1 designers by international automobile manufacturers, or suppliers of finished textile products by large European distributors?
The latest DAVOS report confirms all these performances by ranking Tunisia 31st in the world in terms of innovation.
Nevertheless, these results should not mask the technological gaps to be filled in our industrial fabric, as highlighted by the 2016 industry strategy study, which identified the 21 key technologies to be mastered and promoted.
It is to strengthen these achievements and fill these gaps that the Presidential Program "Together, let's meet the challenges" has set ambitious objectives for the technological development of Tunisian industry.
Thus, industrial exports should reach 25 billion dinars and, above all, the share of technological activities in these exports should increase to 50% in 2014.
To achieve these objectives, a strategy and an action plan for the technological development of Tunisian industry are being implemented through a large number of support programs and structures that will be presented during these two days and that we can summarize very briefly around the following four main axes:
1 - Strengthening Technological Infrastructure, Clusters, Technical Centers, Laboratories (1000 million dinars of planned investments)
2 - Developing University-Business networks through clusters, incubators, and large companies. More than 300 companies and 70 training and research institutions are currently involved.
3 - Setting up specific financing mechanisms for innovative projects with two funds created in 2010, In'tech and Tahil'invest, which complement existing mechanisms.
4 - Implementing an ambitious Program to Promote Tunisian Industry & Technology, mobilizing all stakeholders.
Published October 12, 2010
Posted online October 19, 2010
