Repositioning Tunisia in the AfCFTA Era: Difficulties, Reflections, and Prospects for Progress

Insaf Guedidi ()
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Insaf Guedidi: WTO Chairs Programme (WCP), University of Tunis

Chapter Chapter 5 in From Policy to Practice: Challenges and Ways Forward on the Implementation of the AfCFTA, 2026, pp 79-109 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract This chapter analyses Tunisia’s accession to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and its potential to reposition the country within African and global trade networks. It examines Tunisia’s trade history, its structural dependence on Eurocentric value chains, and the opportunities and constraints presented by the implementation of AfCFTA. The analysis highlights Tunisia’s challenges in building regional value chains, harmonising rules of origin, and overcoming non-tariff barriers, while also pointing to comparative advantages in agro-processing, manufacturing, and services. Using lessons from previous preferential trade agreements, this chapter argues that successful AfCFTA participation requires institutional reform, private sector engagement, logistics modernisation, and digital innovation. The findings suggest that AfCFTA can serve as a catalyst for Tunisia’s structural transformation, enhancing supply chain resilience, reducing vulnerability to external shocks, and enabling more inclusive and sustainable development.

Keywords: Tunisia; African continental free trade area (AfCFTA); Regional value chains (RVCs); Trade integration; Supply chain resilience; external shocks; Intra-African trade (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-032-14051-7_5

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-14051-7_5

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