The publication in the Official Journal of the salary increases put an end to the pessimistic scenarios put forward in the country in recent months, as well as to the recurring rumors in similar circumstances. These speculations went so far as to call into question the capacity of the State to apply the new salary increases.
The Press —Decrees No. 66 to 69 of the year 2026 thus establish a progressive revaluation of remuneration over the period 2026-2028, with retroactive effect from from last January, also including retirement pensions. The whole is part of a strategy aimed at supporting purchasing power and preserving a minimum of social balance, despite persistent economic constraints.
Governance based on transparency and equity
This orientation was at the center of a meeting chaired on April 27 at the Palace of Carthage by President Kaïs Saïed, in the presence of the Head of Government, the Ministers of Finance, Social Affairs, and Employment and Professional Training. Part of a series of meetings devoted to the implementation of article 15 of the Finance Law, it provided an opportunity to take stock of the application of salary increases in the public and private sectors as well as pensions for the years 2026, 2027 and 2028.
On this occasion, the Head of State reaffirmed “the continuation of Tunisia’s social policy, while calling for intensifying the fight against corruption and clientelism”, denouncing at the same time “practices assimilating the State to loot and power to a source of privileges”.
In the same spirit, he also insisted on the need to quickly finalize the platform dedicated to the recruitment of long-term unemployed people, ensuring that the criteria chosen are clear, fair and accessible to all. The objective is to give a real chance to those who, sometimes for years, have remained on the margins of the job market. Moreover, several lines of financing have been mobilized for this purpose, as highlighted by the Head of State.
This approach has a deeply social dimension and aims to restore a feeling of justice, to fight against nepotism and to offer concrete perspectives to thousands of people faced with a prolonged and often discouraging wait. By emphasizing transparency and equal opportunities, the authorities seek to rebuild a bond of trust with citizens, while providing a more humane and more balanced response to the question of employment.
These two decisions, namely the salary increase, on the one hand, the opening of hiring prospects, on the other, thus appear as complementary links in the same chain, that of a social policy articulated around support for purchasing power which has fallen significantly in recent years, and access to employment. They reflect an approach which is not limited to one-off measures, but which seeks to act simultaneously on income and employment opportunities.
Inflation in the background
In this logic, public action strives to meet a double requirement. It consists of mitigating the immediate effects of economic tensions on households while tackling structural imbalances in the labor market. By combining these levers, the government intends to lay the foundations for a more balanced social dynamic, where the protection of purchasing power and professional integration are part of a coherent and sustainable vision.
Certainly, these revaluations offer a certain respite and partially mitigate the erosion of purchasing power, but it is obvious that their scope depends closely on the evolution of prices and the level of inflation. In the absence of effective regulation of distribution channels, supervision of speculation and lasting stabilization of markets, these wage gains could quickly be neutralized by price dynamics.
These measures would benefit from being part of a more global approach, notably integrating a policy of rationalizing consumption, focused on controlling expenses, reducing waste and optimizing consumption behavior.
In other words, the increase in income, taken in isolation, is not enough in itself to sustainably restore purchasing power, in the absence of a structural mechanism capable of rebalancing the relationship between the level of income and that of the cost of living.
