North West Tunisia

Geography

The North-West region is located in the extreme north of the country, bounded to the west by the Tunisian-Algerian border and to the east by Grand Tunis and the North-East region. In the north, the region is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea (with a 51 km long coast) and Bizerte Governorate and to the south by the Central-West Region.

The region is divided by half by the Medjerda River which is the longest river in the country.
The North-West is characterized by its unique forests and mountains (the Khroumire and Mogod Mountains), coral coasts and the large plains.

There are three national parks in the North-West, some of them are totally in the region and some are partially in it : El Feidja National Park in Jendouba, Jebel Serj National Park sheared between Siliana and Kairouan and the Jebel Chitana-Cap Négro National Park divided between Béja and Bizerte.

Demographics

With 1.170.752 people of the North West is the fourth most populous region in the country, these are the most populated Governorates of the North West :

characterised by its vast rurality. in 2004 only 37,1% lives in the cities (compared to 64,9% nationwide) This can be explained by the dominance of the Agricultural sector on the economic activities in the region. The region is also mark by its negative net migration results (-45,3 thousands between 1999 and 2004)

Cities and towns

Despite the large rurality that domains in the North West region, that didn't prevent the existence of several cities and towns :

Social deprivation

Since several years the North West has become one of the poorest region in Tunisia, it registers of the highest rates of poverty in the country, same thing for the level of employment and illiteracy.