Civil Society Playing Key Role in Extractive Sector Reform in Once-Autocratic Tunisia

In Tunisia, NRGI and its partners created a space for diverse voices to be heard in crucial natural resource governance reform talks. This sustainable platform will soon create reform action plans.  

Through technical and financial aid, NRGI empowered Tunisia civil society to play a critical role in policy reform. NRGI supported the founding of the Tunisian Coalition for Transparency in Energy and Mines, CTTEM, which translates grassroots demands into national-level advocacy campaigns.

NRGI collaborated with the Tunisian Anti-Corruption Authority to create a forum in which all stakeholders can participate and create joint reform agendas. NRGI advocacy efforts helped the authority and the mining and energy ministry commit to working toward extractives reform, including Tunisia Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative adherence.

CTTEM successfully advocated for government contract disclosure and for steps toward EITI adoption. Accession to the international initiative was included in successive Tunisia Open Government Partnership action plans, pushing the government to commit to EITI implementation through the creation of a multi-stakeholder group. The government subsequently called civil society actors to appoint representatives to the group in a public statement. All five civil society members previously participated in NRGI trainings.