Tunisia Geography - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Libya

Geographic coordinates

34 00 N, 9 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 163,610 sq km

land: 155,360 sq km

water: 8,250 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Georgia

Area comparison map

Land boundaries

total: 1,495 km

border countries (2): Algeria 1034 km, Libya 461 km

Coastline

1,148 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 12 nm

Climate

temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south

Terrain

mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into the Sahara

Elevation

highest point: Jebel ech Chambi 1,544 m

lowest point: Shatt al Gharsah -17 m

mean elevation: 246 m

Natural resources

petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt

Land use

agricultural land: 64.8% (2018 est.)

arable land: 18.3% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 15.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 31.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 6.6% (2018 est.)

other: 28.6% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

4,590 sq km (2012)

Total renewable water resources

4.615 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Population distribution

the overwhelming majority of the population is located in the northern half of the country; the south remains largely underpopulated as shown in this population distribution map

Natural hazards

flooding; earthquakes; droughts

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note

strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration

NOTE: The information regarding Tunisia on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Tunisia 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Tunisia 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.