IDENTITY CARD OF TUNISIA



 

CULTURE

An ideal climate, a long and gentle seacoast, Tunisia, the northernmost country of Africa has for over 3000 years witnessed the passage of Phoenicians, Romans, Vandals, Byzantines, Turks, Spanish and French. They came as fugitive s or adventurers, to conquer or to claim, warriors and missionaries, traders and farmers each leaving a part of their story in stone or mosaics, on hills of Carthage and the threshold of the Sahara.

This heritage, Tunisia's greatest wealth has been held in trust and preserved in hundreds of sites and museums from the small Punic museum in Utica to the vast collections of the prestigious National Museum of Bardo. Most Museums are closed on Mondays, whereas many on-site archeological museums and ruins are open all week. An entrance fee is usually charged and a caretaker will often act as guide.

Official Name
Republic of Tunisia
Regime
Presidential
President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Major Towns Tunis (Capitale), Nabeul, Sfax, Sousse, Kairouan, Gabes, Bizerte
People
10,216,000 million in 2007
Languages
Arabic (official),
French (widely used), English and Italian
Religion
Islam (existence of Christian and Jewish communities)
Currency Dinar (1 Tunisian dinar = approximately US $ 1.35)
National Day
March 20 (Independence Day acquired in 1956)
   

Sources :
*Institut National de la Statistique (2007)
**Banque Centrale de Tunisie