Protesters in Tunis call for greater openness in the oil industry. Demotix/Chedly Ben Ibrahim. All rights reserved.The social media campaign Winou el Pétrole? (Where is the oil?) recently created such a stir on Facebook and Twitter that Tunisia’s newly elected government, led by Nidaa Tounes, was put in the uncomfortable position of responding to a viral campaign for transparency in the country’s enigmatic energy sector. With the hashtag #WinouelPétrole dominating Tunisian Twitter accounts, campaigners have now placed natural resource management high on the political agenda.
In the afterglow of last year’s parliamentary and presidential elections that saw international observers laud Tunisia as the Arab Spring’s solitary success story, the salience of Winou el Pétrole highlights how socio-economic grievances continue to be voiced by those who feel dramatic political changes in Tunis have yet to substantively address Tunisia’s deep regional disparities. In fact, the answer to the question of what lies behind this seemingly sudden call for transparency in natural resources governance more broadly, and oil in particular, will demonstrate that recovering the trust of Tunisians in the historically maligned interior and south is one of the most pressing challenges facing Tunisia’s new government.
Managing natural resources in the 'new' Tunisia
Inaugural session of Tunisia's new parliament. Demotix/Chedly Ben Ibrahim. All rights reserved.While much attention has been paid in recent months to questions of security and the economy, particularly in the aftermath of the March 2015 terrorist attack on the Bardo museum, the question of who profits from Tunisia’s resource wealth has been percolating under the surface. In 2013, the National Constituent Assembly acted to ensure parliamentary sovereignty over the country’s natural resources through Article 13 of the Constitution, which guarantees the Assembly’s sovereignty and oversight over national contracts for natural resources.
