The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad, Mohamed Ali Nafti, called, Monday December 22, 2025, ambassadors as well as representatives of diplomatic missions and regional and international organizations accredited in Tunisia, to support national efforts to promote Tunisian olive oil.
Tunisian diplomacy mobilized for green gold
Speaking on the occasion of a day dedicated to the promotion of olive oil organized at the headquarters of the International Diplomatic Academy of Tunis, the minister stressed that the Tunisian diplomatic apparatus had been fully mobilized in order to strengthen the visibility of this strategic product, to consolidate its presence on traditional markets and to facilitate access to new international markets.
A strategic sector under pressure
This initiative comes in a particularly difficult context for the olive sector, faced with a situation marked by the volatility of export prices, the increase in production costs, the effects of climate change on yields, as well as financing and storage difficulties weighing on producers and exporters. Added to this are structural challenges linked to the insufficient valorization of the product, often exported in bulk, thus limiting the economic benefits for the country.
The head of Tunisian diplomacy also expressed his wish to see this olive oil diplomacy day, organized for the first time, become a lasting event as an annual event.
Upgrading, exports and new incentives
His Commerce counterpart, Samir Abid, indicated that Tunisia had recorded an increase of around 16% in its exports over the last five years, highlighting a significant qualitative turning point marked by the strengthening of national processing and packaging capacities, the improvement of traceability systems and compliance with international standards, among others.
For his part, the Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries, Ezzeddine Ben Cheikh, announced the adoption of a new strategic vision aimed at strengthening the valorization of Tunisian olive oil, recalling that the national olive-growing heritage is based on more than 100 million olive trees.
This new strategy is based, according to him, around moving upmarket, creating added value and developing targeted partnerships, both nationally and internationally.
Operational measures are currently being implemented to support exports of packaged olive oil, in particular bottled oil, he said, highlighting the establishment of new tax and logistical incentive mechanisms, including coverage of up to 70% of costs, intended to facilitate access for Tunisian brands to foreign markets and improve their competitiveness.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad, Mohamed Ali Nafti, called, Monday December 22, 2025, ambassadors as well as representatives of diplomatic missions and regional and international organizations accredited in Tunisia, to support national efforts to promote Tunisian olive oil.
Speaking on the occasion of a day dedicated to the promotion of olive oil organized at the headquarters of the International Diplomatic Academy of Tunis, the minister stressed that the Tunisian diplomatic apparatus had been fully mobilized in order to strengthen the visibility of this strategic product, to consolidate its presence on traditional markets and to facilitate access to new international markets.
The minister also expressed his wish to see this olive oil diplomacy day, organized for the first time, become a lasting annual event.
This initiative comes in a particularly difficult context for the olive sector, faced with a situation marked by the volatility of export prices, the increase in production costs, the effects of climate change on yields, as well as financing and storage difficulties weighing on producers and exporters. Added to this are structural challenges linked to the insufficient valorization of the product, often exported in bulk, thus limiting the economic benefits for the country.
NJ
