South Korea turns attention to Bizerte's industrial and maritime potential
A South Korean diplomatic and economic interest in Bizerte has emerged from a meeting with the region's governor, building on broader Korea–Tunisia engagement that saw Tunis singled out at a Korea–Africa business forum in Seoul last month.
South Korea has expressed interest in the industrial and maritime potential of the Bizerte region, according to a report by La Presse de Tunisie published on Wednesday 1 July, following a meeting between South Korean representatives and the governor of Bizerte.
The approach comes less than a month after Tunisia was singled out at the Korea–Africa Business Forum in Seoul. On 2 June 2026, Foreign Affairs Minister Mohamed Ali Nafti addressed more than 300 Korean and African business leaders at the forum — one of only four African countries invited to deliver a main address — and presented Tunisia's industrial and energy investment opportunities to Korean companies, La Presse reported at the time.
On the margins of that Seoul gathering, Korean business delegations discussed the possibility of establishing a railway equipment manufacturing unit in Tunisia, and a Korean health-sector executive explored a potential Korea–Tunisia–Africa medical technology centre, according to the earlier La Presse account.
A port with strategic weight
Bizerte's appeal to Korean investors rests in part on the reach of its port. The port of Bizerte–Menzel Bourguiba handles around 20 percent of Tunisia's maritime trade, with an average annual throughput of 5.3 million tonnes of goods — equivalent to approximately 50,000 twenty-foot containers — and sits on the shipping axis linking the Strait of Gibraltar to the Suez Canal, La Presse reported in September 2025.
The port comprises two sites, at Bizerte and Menzel Bourguiba, with 12 quays including five commercial and seven specialised berths handling hydrocarbons, cereals, sugar, metals, cement and steel. It also operates a ship-repair yard with four dry docks.
Beyond the port, the governorate hosts the Bizerte Economic Activities Park, one of two free trade zones in Tunisia offering full tax and customs exemptions for export-oriented industry.
Broader Korea–Tunisia momentum
South Korean corporate interest in North Africa has been widening. Morocco has separately hosted Korean investment discussions focused on automotive, aerospace and electronics manufacturing. In Tunisia, the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency has recorded a 21.4 percent increase in foreign direct investment inflows in 2024 compared with 2023, reaching 2,910 dinars million.
Minister Nafti, during his June Seoul visit, also presented Tunisia's national business climate strategy for 2026–2030, which aims to simplify the legislative framework and offer enhanced incentives to foreign investors. He highlighted Tunisia's skilled workforce, its proximity to European markets, and its access to an African market of 1.4 billion people as comparative advantages.
The specific sectors, projects or investment figures discussed in Bizerte, and the identity of the South Korean representatives at the meeting, had not been confirmed at time of publication. Further details are expected from the governorate and the South Korean Embassy in Tunis.