This Friday, May 2, 2025, the streets of Tunis resounded to the sound of the claims of young practitioners. At the call of the Tunisian organization of young doctors (OTJM), a general strike was observed in university hospitals, mobilizing internal, residents and medical students, all united behind the same requirement: a deep reform of the health system and their working conditions.
The march, which brought together several hundred demonstrators, started at the Faculty of Medicine in Tunis, before taking over the management of the Ministry of Health. Throughout the route, the young white blouses expressed their anger at a situation which they deem unbearable.
The demonstrators denounced the lack of means, the overload of work, and the sometimes precarious conditions in which they exercise, overwhelmed services, often without sufficient supervision, and with obsolete equipment.
Beyond material conditions, protesters call for a revision of the university evaluation system, deemed unfair and unsuitable. The OTJM also requests a fair salary grid, taking into account hours worked, guards and the arduousness of the profession. In particular, they demand a real dialogue with the ministry.
This protest movement is part of a broader context of the public health sector crisis in Tunisia, marked by a chronic lack of staff, departures abroad increasingly frequent, and a loss of confidence of citizens in health institutions.
The OTJM, which has already multiplied the alerts in recent months, announces that this mobilization is only the beginning. Other actions could follow if no concrete measure is taken.
