page_title: Tozeur
section_title: Overview
hierarchical_section_title: Tozeur / Economy / Overview
caption_attribution_description: Tozeur (Tunisia) - Medina's entrance
context_page_description: Tozeur is an oasis and a city in south west Tunisia. The city is located north-west of Chott el Djerid, in between this Chott and the smaller Chott el Gharsa. It is the capital of the Tozeur Governorate. It was the site of Ancient city and former bishopric Tusuros, which remains a Latin Catholic titular see.
context_section_description: Although still the largest part of the local economy, dates and farming are becoming less appealing to the young, who are more often employed in tourism. Tourism is heavily developed and promoted, and Tozeur is considered a center of "desert tourism" (Arabic: السياحة الصحراوية‎). The annual "International Festival of Oases" (Arabic: المهرجان الدولي للواحات بتوزر‎) takes place in the town in November and December each year.
  The government initiated two large-scale projects:
  Tapping of deep aquifers by wells. This led to the depletion of most natural springs and abandonment of the traditional irrigation canals. Tozeur's oasis has been irrigated based on an open surface canal system designed in the 13th century by engineer Ibn Chabbat. This traditional irrigation system is currently being replaced by a system of concrete pipes. Water that was traditionally free to farmers is now being sold to offset the cost of these projects and pipes.
  The second part of these local projects is the initiation of new oases around town. These oases' productivity is very low and their future highly unstable. This situation is slowly leading to the decay of the old oases (due to salinity, poor planning and lack of skilled workers) with productivity plummeting and the health and future of the oases questionable.
  The region around Tozeur is seeing a large influx of unemployed workers and their families from the once rich phosphate region of Metlaoui, Gafsa and Oum Lerrayess in hope of work in the tourism sector. The phosphate mines are no longer productive and thousands of workers were laid off after the government sold them to European investors.
  Overall the region, and Tozeur in particular, is going through a tough time. The region is embracing the unstable tourism economy and shying away from its traditional agricultural based economy. During the first Gulf War the sector suffered with a loss of large number of workers and an increase in unemployment. The same happened during September 11, 2001 attacks and the Iraq War.
caption: Medina entrance
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