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Tunisia

Tunisia
General information
Common nameTunisia
Local name 
 
Name 
 
Motto 
 
"Liberty, Order, Justice"
Anthem"Humat al-Hima"
"Defenders of the Homeland"
CapitalTunis
Largest citycapital
Official languagesArabic
DemonymTunisian
Government
GovernmentUnitary presidential republic
PresidentFouad Mebazaa
Prime MinisterBeji Caid el Sebsi
IndependenceIndependence
from FranceMarch 20, 1956
Geography
Total Area63170 sq mi (163610.3 km2) (92nd)
Water %5.0
Demography
Population Est.10432500 (79th)
Population census11,245,284 (2011)
Density (pop.)62.9/km2 (133rd (2005)) (163/sq mi)
Economy
GDP PPP$96.001 billion (2011)
GDP (PPP) per capita$9,025.067
GDP (nominal)$43.684 billion (2011)
GDP (nominal) per capita$4,106.747
Other information
Gini39.8 (2000) (medium)
HDI(+) 0.683 (2010) (high) (81st)
CurrencyTunisian dinar (TND)
Time zoneCET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)not observed (UTC+1)
Drives on theright
Internet TLD.tn  
Calling code216

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Tunisia (c-enUSaudio=En-us-Tunisia, officially the Tunisian Republic ( ), is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area is almost 165000 km2 (63706.9 sqmi), with an estimated population of just over 10.4 million. Its name is derived from the capital Tunis located in the north-east.

Tunisia is the smallest of the nations situated along the Atlas mountain range. The south of the country is composed of the Sahara desert, with much of the remainder consisting of particularly fertile soil and 1300 km (807.8 mi) of coastline. Both played a prominent role in ancient times, first with the famous Punic city of Carthage, then as the Roman province of Africa, which was known as the "bread basket" of Rome. Later, Tunisia was occupied by Vandals during the 5th century AD, Byzantines in the 6th century, and Arabs in the 8th century. Under the Ottoman Empire, Tunisia was known as "Regency of Tunis". It passed under French protectorate in 1881. After obtaining independence in 1956 the country took the official name of the "Kingdom of Tunisia" at the end of the reign of Lamine Bey and the Husainid Dynasty. With the proclamation of the Tunisian republic on July 25, 1957, the nationalist leader Habib Bourguiba became its first president.

The country was governed by the authoritarian regime of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali from 1987 to 2011 before he fled during the Tunisian revolution. Tunisia, an export-oriented country in the process of liberalizing and privatizing an economy that has averaged 5% GDP growth since the early 1990s, had suffered corruption benefiting the former president's family.

Tunisia has relations with both the European Union-with whom it has an association agreement-and the Arab world. Tunisia is also a member of the Arab Maghreb Union, the Arab League and the African Union. Tunisia has established close relations with France in particular, through economic cooperation, industrial modernization, and privatisation programs. The government's approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict has also made it an intermediary in Middle Eastern diplomacy.


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