Lack of prospects: Tunisia’s youth just want to leave

The Tunisian coastal town of Sfax is considered the departure point for many migrants from Africa to Europe. Young Tunisians have also fled from there to flee the lack of prospects in the country.

Strolling through the old town of Sfax with Omar Ben Amor, one quickly asks oneself: Where have the young people gone? In the bustling medina, what Ben Amor describes as an exodus becomes visible.

Ben Amor is an activist and cares for migrants. Not only about those who come to Tunisia from other African countries on their way to Europe, but also about his compatriots.

“You see the migration in the neighborhoods, the cafés, in the houses,” he says. “It’s there every day, structurally it’s getting crasser and crazier, so it’s affecting our everyday lives. We’re losing those close to us, our schoolmates, part of the neighborhood here — we’re losing our youth.”

Said finds no answer to problems

Tunisia’s second largest city, Sfax, is less than 200 kilometers from the Italian island of Lampedusa and is known for young Tunisians who migrate illegally. You can hardly find young people in the medina anymore, explains Ben Amor. Many would have run away, onto one of the many fishing boats that go out every day. Ben Amor doesn’t want to convince her to stay, he says. As well as?

“There’s nothing for them here,” says Ben Amor. “Not in their country, in their neighborhood, not even at home. They don’t find themselves here, nobody to represent them. They have no future and they compare themselves to others their age around the world – and come to the conclusion that they would rather become citizens of the world.”

And that means: get out of Tunisia. The biggest problem for many young people: no economic perspective. Many are unemployed – whether well educated, badly or not at all. Then there are the rising prices in the country, the economic crisis, the political crisis. President Kais Said, who has ruled by decree without a parliament or government for the past year and a half, has not found any answers to all of this.

“You can’t live here anymore”

In the alleys of the medina, he strikes up a conversation with three young Tunisians. One of them smokes, it smells like cannabis. “You can’t live here anymore,” he explains, shrugging his shoulders. “Everything is expensive, you can’t lead a decent life like the others, you can’t even afford clothes anymore.”

He also wants to cross the sea, he says, and has tried it several times. “We’re over, they brought us back, we’re over again, back again. Of course I’ll try again.”

“Migration essential part of the country”

Ben Amor tries to motivate friends to give an interview. Finding those who want to go to Europe or have already tried it is not difficult. Many prefer not to talk in front of the microphone. Talk about your own misery again? Not again.

Later, Omar receives a voice message from an acquaintance. When Tunisians talk about leaving, they call it ‘harga’, which means “burning” in Arabic – as an allusion to those who burn their papers, so to speak, and flee the country because they have no prospects.

“The Harga – the migration – is an essential part of our country,” explains the woman. “It’s not new, people know what they’re getting into. I want it too, I’ve tried it and I’ll do it again.” There is no reason to stay in Tunisia. “No future, no money, no job, no level. Only illness, poverty, no education, rubbish.”

Massive garbage problem as a symbol of state failure

In fact, Sfax has also had a massive and smelly garbage problem for years. The reason: an outsourced garbage dump, which not only caused an enormous stench but, according to local residents, also leads to more and more allergies, respiratory diseases, miscarriages and cancer cases. There have been several protests, even with one dead – the President had to intervene. Now there is no dump at all – the problem continues to stink to high heaven.

Local people say what is happening in Sfax is symbolic of the systematic failure of the state. So far, the state has not been able to solve this garbage problem, nor the urge of young people to emigrate. Just get away from Sfax.