Out of every 100 dinars of gross production in Tunisia, nearly 21 come from a subsidiary of a foreign group. In Morocco, the share falls to 14.7 dinars, and in Egypt to 11.1.
This one-to-five ratio changes the way Tunisian economy is read: behind many production chains that seem national, there is an ordering party based abroad, whose decisions weigh on local order books.
However, this flattering figure masks a stagnation. Since the early 2010s, production by foreign subsidiaries in Tunisia has stagnated around 14 billion dollars. Over the same period, Egypt has nearly tripled its own to around 55 billion, and Morocco has continued a steady rise to nearly 30 billion.
This is the finding reported by the International Labour Organization in its October 2026 note, “FDI and global value chains in Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco: How do they matter for employment?“. By cross-referencing OECD data on multinationals with input-output tables covering 76 countries and 41 sectors, its authors show that the impact of foreign investment on employment depends less on their volume than on their sector and their place in value chains.
The most exposed country is not the most dynamic
The ranking of foreign penetration places Tunisia at the top with 20.7% of gross production, ahead of Morocco at 14.7% and Egypt at 11.1%. But the note reminds that size does not determine trajectory.
Morocco has built an automotive hub that drives its exports, Egypt concentrates its stock of investments in hydrocarbons. Tunisia, for its part, remains anchored in its historical role as a production platform for European companies, with a narrower foreign base and, according to the authors, weaker momentum since the crisis that followed 2011.
An economy that exports through its subsidiaries
