Good food, beaches, bars, fun. This is what summer looks like for many tourists coming to Tunisia to spend their holidays here. But the season, seen from the perspective of seasonal workers, takes on a very different look. In total contrast with the picture postcard scenery, the summer season for people employed in the tourism sector implies long, tiring, and poorly-paid shifts behind the scenes. 

The Made in Tunisia clothes industry for the European market consumes large amounts of water and pollutes Tunisia’s coastline. In Ksibet El Mediouni, the population is paying the price of the environmental cost of fast fashion. 

Many private transporters move goods of all kinds between Tunisia and Europe. Most of them, however, operate illegally and risk being arrested by customs. This profitable business has developed thanks to the thousands of Tunisians who rely on it, despite the absence of any protection against fraud and scams. 

For more than two decades, the beaches in the southern suburbs of Tunis have seen regular swimming bans due to high levels of pollution. What exactly do these waters contain? Inkyfada has had access to water analyses that detail the nature of this marine pollution, and the associated risks it poses to humans and biodiversity.