Documented by Marisa Holmes. While visiting the United States, Tunisian prime minister Mehdi Jomaa stopped by Columbia Business School for a chat with students and professors. He was asked about foreign investment. This is the first answer of his Q&A.; At the end of his answer, he said : "I don't like to speak about Tunisia as a spring Arabic country, but as a democracy startup. Democracy and business startup. That's how I would like to promote Tunisia. " Here is the totality of the transcription word for word : - Thank you prime minister Jomaa. I am really delighted and honored to have you at Columbia University. This is a very special moment an exciting one for me personally. We now move to the Q&A; segment. And let me specify the rules again. The questions should be short. Make sur that you receive the microphone before you speak. Make sure that your questions are concised. Speak slowly and clearly because the Prime Minister is a bit jetlagged. (inaudible) Mehdi Jomaa : "I think we should translate in French." - "Just to begin, I'd like to ask the Prime Minister, this is just for the Station, a simple marketing question. I'm a professor of marketing, and the only thing I know is marketing. Since you are appointed as a prime minister, you are working incessantly, tirelessly to lure foreign investors to Tunisia. Today I heard that you met with the Google chief Eric Schmitt and tried to convince him to invest in Tunisia. So why should foreign investors come to Tunisia? What is the comparative advantage to Tunisia, what is the rationale, what are the main reasons that you gave them. That's kind of my simple marketing question. - Mehdi Jomaa : " It's a simple question but I need 15 minutes to answer it. I think there is many reasons. You know Tunisia it's an open land for investors. And even during the revolution period, all the companies who were present, almost the majority of the companies who were present in Tunisia, they are still there and they increased their investment. That's why the level of foreign investment was not reduced in a big way. So today there is fundamental reasons and there is reasons linked to the period that we live. With this peaceful and negotiated issue with the vote of the constitution, with the new atmosphere and climate in Tunisia, we can give visibility that the investors were expecting and lost those three last years. But more than that when you see the geographical position of Tunisia, it's in the intersection of three big areas. Europe first. You know that our first partner is European (inaudible). We are making more than, around 80% of our trade exchanges, economy is with Europe. In both sense, in both directions. We are part of the middle east of Arabic area and I think you know that we speak Arabic. And I think that we've all discovered that. We are in Africa, and you know what is the future of what is expecting and starting in Africa. So really that's for the geographical. Resources now. One of the best choice of Tunisia, just after the independence is to invest in education. And today you have a standard of education, a level and rate of education in Tunisia which is at the level of the European standard. I think that you know some of the students here, you can judge by themselves by the level of education that we have in Tunisia. So we have resources. And this people is open to those three different areas. We are open to their culture, we are open to their languages. We speak the same language. We speak in the same way. So its main and fundamental factors that interest each investor to be in that area. And I have to add an important one what is the competitiveness of the Tunisian resources. I experimented that in my previous experience. We set up an enterprise and really with some training you can get skilled resources with competitiveness cost. So for all of that, it's really and we have a tradition for... foreign investors. For all of that Tunisia not only is a good place, but it could be like a hub for investors. Many of them, when I discuss with them, and that's part of the meeting that I go to this morning, are interested by this place. In fact they cannot do and decide just one month after this, after solving the problem they have to wait and study. But for the long term, Tunisia could be one of the best investment land in the area. And let me tell you something, you are in the business majority, I don't like to speak about Tunisia as a spring Arabic country, but as a democracy startup. Democracy and business startup. That's how I would like to promote Tunisia."

• published: 02 Apr 2014
• views: 402