Photobook: Rural communities in Tunisia connecting the dots
This photobook showcases the impact of IFAD-supported projects on rural people in Tunisia, bringing to life their transformative stories.
Rural life is often seen as synonymous with agriculture. But there’s more to rural communities than farming: in each town and village, people take part in the rich tapestry of vocations and livelihoods that make up daily life.
In central Tunisia, the IFAD-supported IESS and PROFITS projects support a wide variety of rural businesses. Let’s meet some of the people that keep their communities ticking – from morning till night.
The day begins early for Khmaies. Well before sunrise, he’s already up and busy loading his toktok (motorized rickshaw) before riding it to the souk. Here, he sells freshly prepared snacks and drinks at his stall, including eggs whipped up by his wife, Feiza.
Before receiving his toktok through IESS, Khmaies had to hire a private car to take him to the souk every day. The journeys were expensive and ate into his small profits. At one point he even had to borrow money and sell some equipment to get by. Now that getting to and from the souk is easy, he can better support his two teenage children.
“Owning a means of transport gives you a sense of independence and freedom,” says Khmaies.
Every morning, Amani welcomes an excited group of four-year-olds to the nursery school where she works. For the next three hours, she leads her students through literacy, religious education, motor skills and supervised play.
The nursery school first opened its doors less than a year ago thanks to support from IESS. Its establishment has been transformative: local children finally have a safe place where they can learn and play, while parents, especially mothers, have more time to focus on work.
“Tunisian women in rural areas have become very active, so it’s important that they can leave their children with us,” says Amina.
During the day, Fatma can be found in the fields by her house, tending to her flock of sheep. She received her first sheep a few years ago through PROFITS, and today she breeds and sells them year-round while keeping some to feed her family.
Her husband Mounir, who has a physical disability, once struggled to support the family on his state benefits. With Fatma’s added income from selling sheep, the couple can now cover the cost of both their teenage daughters’ studies.
“I never thought that one day I would own a flock of sheep, breed them and have them graze in the wild,” says Fatma.
On their way home from work, people in search of a haircut drop by Dhaker’s salon. It’s a luxury they didn’t used to have: before 21-year-old Dhaker opened his doors, the nearest salon was more than 25km away.
Until recently, Dhaker earned little working odd construction jobs. His pivot to hairdressing was made possible by IESS, which provided him with the training and equipment to set up his business on a plot of land belonging to his parents. He’s determined to grow it further and make them proud.
“Since the creation of my project, I feel better, calmer and more serene,” says Dhaker.
In the evening, Tahar (left) is busy serving pizza to hungry customers at his pizzeria. He lived in Italy for three decades before returning home to open his restaurant, and proudly says that the pizza he makes is 100 per cent authentic.
His secret? Quality ingredients. Tahar is a loyal customer of Sala and Danel, two local women who set up a cheese factory with support from PROFITS. He says their mozzarella is as good as any he tried in Italy.
“They passed the test,” says Tahar.