Since 2011 and following the adoption of the Council of Europe Policy towards Neighbouring Regions by the Committee of Ministers, the Council of Europe has been a long-standing partner of Tunisia in advancing democratic governance, human rights and the rule of law. This partnership is anchored in sustained political dialogue and a wide-ranging technical cooperation agenda, aligned with Council of Europe standards and values.

The Neighbourhood Partnership with Tunisia for 2026-2029 will further strengthen co-operation between the Council of Europe and Tunisia and enlarge the common legal space linking both shores of the Mediterranean. Capacity building efforts will continue in justice reforms, combatting violence against women and against children, fighting against trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants, while enhancing skills and knowledge of justice professionals, including through Council of Europe tools like the European Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP Programme).

Since July 2021, the Council of Europe Office in Tunis acts as a regional hub, coordinating the implementation of regional cooperation programmes across the Southern Mediterranean. This includes the South Programme, a joint initiative co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and currently implemented in its sixth phase.

In line with the shared commitment of the Council of Europe and the European Union to empower and meaningfully involve civil society, the South Programme works in close coordination with the Council of Europe North-South Centre, which contributes its expertise in strengthening civil society participation, particularly youth organisations.

Tunisia has acceded to several Council of Europe Conventions, including the Convention on Cybercrime (Budapest Convention), Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (Lanzarote Convention), Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (Convention 108 and its modernised version, Convention 108+). Furthermore, Tunisia has signed the Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (Macolin Convention) and Convention on the Counterfeiting of Medical Products and Similar Crimes involving Threats to Public Health (MEDICRIME).

In addition, Tunisia actively participates in several Council of Europe monitoring and cooperation bodies and networks, such as the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) since 2010 and the Mediterranean Network for Co-operation on Drugs and Addictions (MedNET) of the Pompidou Group, since 2006. Tunisia is also an Observer of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) since 2016 and is actively involved in the regional European Union/Council of Europe joint programme CyberSouth+ which started in 2024 with the aim to strengthen criminal justice capacities for enhanced cooperation on cybercrime and disclosure of electronic evidence.

Cooperation with Tunisia is financed through a combination of European Union contributions, Council of Europe ordinary budget resources and voluntary contributions from Council of Europe member States.

Through the actions implemented in 2023, the Neighbourhood Partnership with Tunisia 2022-2025 contributed to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG 3, SDG 4 (target 7), SDG 5 (targets 1 and 2), SDG 8 (target 7), SDG 10 and SDG 16 (targets 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 10).

More information: Overview of the Council of Europe Contribution to the UN 2030 Agenda.