Tunisia’s economic crisis deepens as the promise of a better life fades

Tunis, Tunisia – Like many Tunisian university graduates, Cherine Ghanmi believed a degree would offer her family a way out of poverty. Growing up in the marginalised town of al-Mazzunah, in the central Sidi Bou Zid governorate, Ghanmi had walked 5km (3.1 miles) to the school her parents struggled to put her through. They hoped she would eventually find a job and support them financially, easing their burden after years of sacrifice. But more than a decade after graduating in 2012, she remains unemployed. Instead of supporting her parents, she says, she continues to rely on them. “We studied and graduated believing we had finally found a way out of poverty,” she said.