Summary:

On Thursday, 11 May 2023, the Minister of Family, Women, Children, and Seniors announced plans for a large-scale study of child suicide in Tunisia as the issue continues to plague communities.

The Minister, Amel Belhaj Moussa, noted that 2023 data through April indicated, on average, two children die by suicide per month, with 26 monthly attempts recorded. Reports to child protection services over the same period rose by 2,000 from the same period in 2022, to a total of 7,500 reports.

The data indicate that many of the reports occur in large, coastal metropolitan areas such as Tunis, Sousse, and Sfax.

The government plans to employ additional child protection personnel to help address the growing issue across numerous locations in the country.

Outlook:  

Tunisian children and adults face the same risks as others globally from the impacts of social media on mental health and the potential for suicide.

In urban areas of Tunisia, mobile phone adoption is above 90%, making mobile internet access simple and increasing the potential for exposure to the negative impacts of online life.

Limited education and training on how to identify, report, and manage mental health issues may also be driving an increase in observed issues.

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