Tunisia: Rural Labour and Structural Transformation

143 Pages·1991·4 MB·English

by  Ajit Ghose

Tunisia
The ILO’s World Employment Programme (WEP) aims to assist and
encourage member States to adopt and implement active policies and
projects designed to promote full, productive and freely-chosen
employment and to reduce poverty. Through its action-oriented
research, technical advisory services, national projects and the work of
its four regional employment teams in Africa, Asia and Latin America,
the WEP pays special attention to the longer-term development problems
of rural areas where the vast majority of poor and underemployed
people still live, and to the rapidly growing urban informal sector.
At the same time, in response to the economic crises and the growth
in open unemployment of the 1980s, the WEP has entered into an
ongoing dialogue with the social partners and other international
agencies on the social dimensions of adjustment, and is devoting a major
part of its policy analysis and advice to achieving greater equity in
structural adjustment programmes. Employment and poverty
monitoring, direct employment creation and income generation for
vulnerable groups, linkages between macro-economic and micro-
economic interventions, technological change and labour market
problems and policies are among the areas covered.
Through these overall activities, the ILO has been able to help
national decision-makers to reshape their policies and plans with the aim
of eradicating mass poverty and promoting productive employment.
This publication is the outcome of a WEP project.
Tunisia
Rural labour and structural
transformation
Samir Radwan,Vali Jamal and Ajit Ghose
A study prepared for the International Labour Office within the
framework of the World Employment Programme
London and New York
First published 1991
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
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© 1991 International Labour Organisation
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Radwan, Samir
Tunisia: Rural labour and structural transformation.
1. Tunisia. Economic conditions
I. Title II. Jamal, Vali III. Ghose, Ajit Kumar,
330.9611052
ISBN 0-415-04274-7
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
has been applied for
ISBN 0-203-98309-2 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-04274-7 (Print Edition)
The designations employed in ILO publications, which are in conformity with United
Nations practice, and the presentation of material therein do not imply the expression of
any opinion whatsoever on the part of the International Labour Office concerning the legal
status of any country, area or territory or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation
of its frontiers.
The responsibility for opinions expressed in studies and other contributions rests solely
with their authors, and publication does not constitute an endorsement by the International
Labour Office of the opinions expressed in them.
Reference to names of firms and commercial products and processes does not imply their
endorsement by the International Labour Office, and any failure to mention a particular
firm, commercial product or process is not a sign of disapproval.
Contents
List of figures vii
List of tables v iii
Preface xi
1 Introduction 1
2 Employment and labour markets 8
Trends in population and labour force 8
Agricultural labour force 12
Traditional escape routes 18
Conclusion 28
3 The agrarian economy: Evolution and prospects 31
Evolution of agrarian policy 32
Trends in agricultural production 34
Technological change 37
Some aspects of landholding 39
Investment in agriculture 42
Prices and subsidies 44
Conclusion 28
4 Income distribution and poverty 48
Income distribution and trends 48
Poverty incidence and trends 55
Growth and equity 64
vi
Conclusion 28
5 Food consumption, food balances and subsidies 68
Food consumption in 1980 68
Cereal preferences 70
Food balances 78
Subsidies 88
Conclusion 28
6 Conclusion 92
Appendix A: Labour migration from Tunisia 97
Appendix B: Estimates of unemployment 1 00
Appendix C: Poverty lines in Tunisia: A critical review 1 03
Notes 1 19
Index 1 25
Figures
4.1 SMIG in real terms, 1961–87 65
5.1 Food consumption-income relationships, 1980 71
5.2 Wheat preferences by income classes 73
5.3 Cereal preferences: rural and urban, 1980 74
5.4 Hard and soft wheat: quantity and price ratios, 1966–80, and 79
quantity ratio projected to 2000
5.5 Wheat production, imports and total cereal production, 1934–38, 84
1948–52 and 1952–87
5.6 Food balances, 1934–38, 1962–64 and 1982–84 84
Tables
1.1 External resources and GDP, 1965–86 5
1.2 Vital indicators of the economy, 1965–86 6
2.1 Distribution of population and labour force by location, 1956– 10
84
2.2 Labour force by sectors, 1975 and 1984 12
2.3 Structure of the labour force by location, 1984 13
2.4 Agricultural labour force by type, 1976/77 to 1984/85 14
2.5 Employment by size of landholding, 1979 16
2.6 Non-agricultural activities, 1985 17
2.7 Distribution of landholders by time devoted to agricultural 17
activities and size of holding, 1980
2.8 Labour force breakdown by major forms, 1975, 1980 and 19
1984
2.9 Informal sector employment by localization compared with 21
public and private modern sector employment, 1980
2.10 Ratio of value added per capita in informal sector compared 22
with modern sector, 1981
2.11 Net emigration and remittances, 1964–86 26
2.12 Contribution of emigration to employment, 1962–81 and 27
projections for 1982–91
2.13 Regional characteristics of active population and 29
unemployment, 1975 and 1984
3.1 Average annual rates of growth of agricultural output, 1962– 35
64 to 1982–84, selected years
3.2 Cropping pattern, 1962 to 1982–84, selected years 36
3.3 Allocation of irrigated area, 1983–84 36
3.4 Livestock and poultry population, 1956 to 1982–84, selected 37
years
3.5 Indicators of technological change, 1960–62 to 1982–84 37
3.6 Pattern of landholding, 1961–62, 1975–76 and 1979–80 39
3.7 Distribution of cultivated areas, 1975–76 (annual crops and 40
tree crops) and 1979–80 (annual crops)
ix
3.8 Pattern of fertilizer use by size-class of holding, 1975–76 and 41
1979–80
3.9 Livestock distribution, 1975–76 and 1979–80 42
3.10 Investment in agriculture, 1960–61 to 1977–84 42
3.11 Percentage distribution of investment in agriculture by 43
subsector, 1962–71 to 1982–85
3.12 Growth of product prices, 1965–1969/71 to 1976/78–1982/84 45
4.1 Expenditure per person and per household, 1980 and 1985 50
4.2 Per capita consumption by region, 1980 and 1985 50
4.3 Consumption according to social classes, 1980 and 1985 50
4.4 Consumption distribution, 1985 52
4.5 Consumption distribution according to household budget 53
surveys
4.6 Agricultural and non-agricultural GDP and wage share, 1966– 55
84, selected items and years
4.7 Poverty lines and poverty incidence, 1975 and 1985: ILO, 57
World Bank and INS
4.8 Incidence of poverty and total number in poverty by 58
occupational groups, 1985
4.9 Incidence of poverty by districts and rural/urban, 1985 59
4.10 Poverty line and poverty incidence, 1966–85 61
4.11 Total number in poverty: ILO and INS, 1975, 1980 and 1985 61
4.12 SMIG (48-hour week) in current and real terms, 1961–87 63
5.1 Calorie and expenditure distribution of the average diet, 1980 69
5.2 Food consumption-income relationships, 1980 71
5.3 Wheat preferences: hard and soft wheat, 1980 73
5.4 Cereal preferences: rural and urban, 1980 75
5.5 Changing wheat preferences, 1966–85 75
5.6 Price regime: hard and soft wheat, 1980 and 1987 77
5.7 Evolution of trade balance, selected items, 1975, 1980 and 79
1985
5.8 Food imports, 1983–85 81
5.9 Cereal supply, 1977–86, selected years 81
5.10 Wheat demand and supply, 1980 82
5.11 Production and imports of wheat and total cereals, 1934–38 to 84
1985 selected years
5.12 Estimated food balance sheets for 1934–38, 1962–64 and 84
1982–84
5.13 Expenditures of the price equalization fund, 1974–83 88
5.14 Subsidies and price support in Tunisia, 1982 90
5.15 Food subsidies in Tunisia and neighbouring countries, 1982 90