SMALL GRANTS STORIES : Tunisia Bio

COVID-19 Response / Articles / 03-11-2022

I have always seen strong potential in my homeland, Tunisia. After the Tunisian revolution, I opted to leave my job abroad and return home, working with family members in my native Sbeitla region on a seed oil-extraction project.  The goal was to export this highly demanded product to key international markets.

It took time to get the project rolling, both due to administrative delays and the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, we kept working, gradually securing export orders and expanding our staff. So far, we have created five jobs and more than 50 indirect or seasonal jobs.

During the pandemic, we received support from the COVID-19 Enterprise Recovery Fund established by the U.S. government as part of its USAID Tunisia JOBS program. This helped us fund business development meetings in Germany, where we secured new clients.

Sofiene Ghaouari  - Tunisia Bio General Manager, Sbeitla

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