Why education reform in Tunisia has stalled since 2023?

Understanding the crisis Since 2023, Tunisia’s education system has been repeatedly disrupted by strikes, grade boycotts, and escalating confrontations between teacher unions and the Ministry of Education (MOE). Each year, nearly 100,000 students drop out of school—an average of roughly 300 dropouts per day—highlighting the persistent challenges facing the system. At the peak of the crisis, authorities suspended the salaries of more than 17,000 teachers after they refused to submit student grades. These disruptions are not isolated incidents, but part of a broader wave of social unrest: in January 2026 alone, Tunisia recorded over 500 protests, nearly half linked to employment conditions and unpaid wages, including those of teachers. Yet the significance of this breakdown becomes clearer when viewed against […]