The Tunisian government is set to develop a new territorial indicator to measure the accessibility of public services across different regions. This move comes as a response to growing concerns about the uneven distribution of essential services such as healthcare, education, and transportation. According to recent reports, several regions in Tunisia, including Tataouine, Jendouba, Kairouan, and Béja, have been facing challenges in accessing basic services.
The new indicator will focus on six key areas: health, specialized education, water, transportation, administrative services, and culture. The first step in developing this indicator will be to identify comparable services within each area. However, the presence of a service will not be enough to measure its accessibility; the distance to the nearest service will also be taken into account. This approach aims to move beyond a binary mapping of service availability to a more nuanced understanding of territorial accessibility.
The development of this indicator is seen as a crucial step towards understanding the real accessibility of public services in Tunisia. Two regions with the same type of service may have different accessibility levels depending on the service's location and the population it serves. The new indicator will help policymakers to identify areas where services are lacking and make informed decisions about resource allocation.
However, the development of this indicator will not be without challenges. One of the main difficulties will be methodological, as different services have different units of measurement. For instance, scanner services, water connections, and autism specialized care cannot be measured in the same way. The future mapping will need to separate these categories and specify the sources, dates, and territorial coverage of each service.
The initiative is part of a broader effort to test the hypothesis of a Tunisian geography of access to essential services. The project will use data to measure how place of residence affects access to services. This approach is expected to provide a more accurate understanding of the situation on the ground and inform policy decisions.
The announcement of this project was made on October 5, 2026, by Raja Bessais, a writer for Webmanagercenter. According to Bessais, the project aims to transform the way public services are delivered and to make Tunisian products more exportable. The project has been welcomed by various stakeholders, who see it as an opportunity to improve the quality of life for Tunisian citizens.
The development of this territorial indicator is also seen as a way to address the issue of inequality in access to public services. With a more accurate understanding of the situation on the ground, policymakers will be able to target resources more effectively and reduce regional disparities. The project is expected to have a positive impact on the lives of thousands of Tunisian citizens who currently face challenges in accessing basic services.
Key points
- The Tunisian government is developing a new territorial indicator to measure the accessibility of public services across different regions.
- The indicator will focus on six key areas: health, specialized education, water, transportation, administrative services, and culture.
- The project aims to test the hypothesis of a Tunisian geography of access to essential services and inform policy decisions.
