Strategic location and commercial mobility:
The city of Sfax is historically known for its economic vitality because it represents a pivotal pole of exchanges towards the world, which has allowed it to influence on its immediate and distant fringes, and an extension to the borders of Africa, the Middle -East and Europe. This openness to the world was accompanied by the richness and diversity of the agricultural, artisanal, commercial and service productive fabric, supported by the options adopted in terms of globalization of the national economy and the conclusion of agreements to establish free trade zones with Europe on the one hand, and with neighboring countries on the other.
1. Sfax: An economic force!
The manifestations of Sfax's economic strength lie in:
-
Its adequate infrastructure: highway, rail network, 2 seaports:
- The port of Sfax: a multipurpose port to traffic (4.6 million tons / year and 721 ships in 20201 ) consisting mainly of solid bulk (phosphate and derivatives, sea salt, cereals, etc.).
- The port of Skhira: which has an important infrastructure for the storage of crude oil and refined petroleum products, as well as pipelines for loading and unloading. Its traffic mainly consists of hydrocarbons (3.5 million tons out of a total of 3.85 million tons in 2020 2 ).The remainder consists of phosphate derivatives. The number of ships passing through the port of Skhira is 132 ships in 2020.3
- 23 industrial zones with a developed area (in 2020)4 )
- Highly qualified human resources characterized by initiative and love of work.
- Significant potential of a young generation
- A technological center and 11 professional training centers respecting international standards.5 respectant les standards internationaux.
- A favorable seafront to establish multiple international links and an attractive destination for investors.
- Projects to create modern urban regions (Sfax, New Taparura ...).
- A diversified and active industrial fabric (35% of establishments at regional level)
- An important commercial movement.
- A sector of traditional industries
- Small active trades
- An active and integrated maritime fishing sector (66% of regional production).
- A commercial port representing a door open to the outside.
- An international airport of Sfax Thyna.
- An electrification rate of 99.7% in urban areas and 97% in rural areas in 2020)
- A drinking water connection rate of 99% in urban areas and 90% (in rural areas in 2020,
- A sanitation service rate of 52% (80% in communal environment) with a network of 678 km (in 2019)
2. Sfax: The second industrial pole of Tunisia
- Sfax represents the second industrial pole of Tunisia after the capital, and one of its industrial pillars is the "Tunisian chemical complex", which is based on a capital estimated at 476 million dinars and annually transfers about 6.5 million tons phosphate.
- The Sfax cluster includes 202 industrial establishments, providing 15,409 jobs, 47 exporting industrial establishments providing 5,790 jobs, and most of their activities are spread over the textile, clothing, leather, footwear and wood industries and the electrical and electronic industries.
- The industrial pole of Sfax Medina extends over 4 developed industrial zones covering 131.8 hectares,6 namely, "La Poudrière 1", "La Poudrière 2", "Madagascar" and "ElMao". As for the outskirts of the city, the industrial zones are concentrated in 16 delegations.
Manufacturing industries
The industrial fabric currently comprises around 2,300 units which provide 59,000 jobs, i.e. 25% of the employed working population. Most of these companies are small.
Companies employing more than 10 workers amounted, in 2021, to 690 units, i.e. 30% of the national industrial fabric, employing more than 40,000 people, of whom 123 totally exporters and 115 with foreign participation, distributed as follows:
| Sectors | TE* | OTE * | Total |
|
Agrifoods industries |
29 |
119 |
148 |
|
Industries of Ceramic and glass building materials |
1 |
31 |
32 |
|
Mechanical and metallurgical industries |
7 |
121 |
128 |
|
Electrical, electronic and household appliance industries |
3 |
21 |
24 |
|
Chemical industries |
5 |
93 |
98 |
|
Textile and clothing industries |
72 |
71 |
143 |
|
Wood, cork and furniture industries |
2 |
36 |
38 |
|
Leather and footwear industries |
4 |
31 |
35 |
|
Various industries |
0 |
44 |
44 |
|
Total |
123 |
567 |
690 |
- * TE: Totally Exporting
- * OTE: Other than Totally Exporting
Their distribution shows a dominance of textile and clothing activities (20.7%), agri-food (21.4%), mechanical industries (18.6%) and chemical industries (14.2%). The remainder is distributed among the leather and footwear industries, the wood industries, the electrical and electronic industries and the diversified industries.
Non-manufacturing industries:
Hydrocarbons constitute the main axis of development of non-manufacturing industries with several onshore and offshore fields. The region of Sfax produces 900,000 m3 of oil, i.e. of national production. The main deposit is that of Miskar natural gas which covers a total area of 352 km2 with a capacity of 22.7 billion m3. It represents the most important source of natural gas production, i.e. 1.9 billion m3, equivalent to 80% of national production.
3. Sfax: Small-business activity
Sfax has been known since antiquity for an important artisanal activity, since there are approximately 460 wholesalers, 3,333 retail trade, 2,625 workshops and small trades,7 the Ministry of Industry and Trade having allocated 2,571 professional cards.8.
4. Industry and scientific research
The governorate of Sfax is the second university pole of the country comprising 26 university institutions (5 faculties, 3 schools, 12 institutes and 6 private faculties) housing nearly 33,000 students enrolled in various disciplines (scientific, economic, literary, technological and computer engineering), 106 research laboratories, 6,400 researchers, three business incubators and three centers promoting the dissemination of the entrepreneurial and business spirit among students and graduates, in particular the digital research center, the biotechnology center and the olive tree center.
The governorate also has a network of private and public professional training centers made up, in 2020, of 22 public centers and 45 private centers with a total capacity of 8,590 training positions. These centers offer training specialties covering the various industrial sectors (agri-food, leather and footwear, electronics and IT, clothing, mechanics, plastics, etc.).
Within the framework of Industry 4.0, the Sfax Industry 4.0 Competence Center is an information and services platform aimed at accelerating the digital transformation of the manufacturing industry and related industries. It serves to bring together in a one place, on the one hand, manufacturers interested in Industry 4.0 and, on the other hand, operators in Industry 4.0
(Suppliers and integrators of technological solutions, technology startups, research and development and innovation in the field of Industry 4.0.). The center is funded by GIZ to the tune of 2,500 TND for 33 put from 2019.9 The objectives of the center are:
- The creation of a network for the Tunisian Industry 4.0 strategy.
- Support for the implementation of Industry 4.0 solutions in 100 SMEs.
- Assisting in launching of 6 startups.
- Raising awareness of 500 Tunisian SMEs on the subject Industry 4.0.
- The training of 200 people in 50 companies.
- The development of 50 new innovative solutions
- 1 * Source: GENERAL COMMISSION FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
- 2 * GENERAL COMMISSION FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
- 3 * GENERAL COMMISSION FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
- 4 * AFI + Municipalities
- 5 * Regional Directorates of Professional Training and Employment
- 6 * APII
- 7 * According to 2017 statistics
- 8 * Until the end of 2017
- 9 * Technopole of Sfax
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