Tunisia is in a tumultuous time right now, having a newly elected provisional government after a revolution that was carried out by the youth of the country. The revolution began mostly due to high unemployment among young people, which was at over twenty percent (Tapscott). There has been a growing population bulge tending towards the young in Tunisia, where over forty-two percent of the people are under twenty-five (Goodhart). The high unemployment of the youth in conjunction with a large generational gap between young and old means that the young in Tunisia see themselves as Tunisia's future and plan to create a new country that makes it so.
Things weren't all that bad before the revolution, however. Ben-Ali actually did wonders for women's rights and education, improving the education rate among women from just 11% to 55% in only 25 years (Unicef). This 44% rise in education among women shows that Tunisia has been committed to being well-educated and liberal in regards to women's rights. Unless the country can solve the problems of unemployment for the youth of the country, though, stability does not seem to be much of an option.
Sources:
Goodhart, David. "Bridging The Generation Gap." Prospect Magazine. Web. 10 Jan. 2012. http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/tag/bridging-the-generation-gap/.
Tapscott, Don. "Tunisia, Egypt and the Coming Generational Explosion." The Globe and Mail. 27 Jan. 2011. Web. 10 Jan. 2012. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/commentary/don-tapscott/tunisia-egypt-and-the-coming-generational-explosion/article1885446/.
"The Generation Gap." UNICEF. 1994. Web. 10 Jan. 2012. http://www.unicef.org/pon95/wome0009.html.
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