Tunisian Minister of Education Abdellatif Abid announced that for the first time, the Turkish language will be taught at a number of Tunisian high schools in the upcoming academic year

IBNA: According to tunisia-live.net, the decision was announced during a “Reading Day” ceremony in Carthage.

Hamida Hedfi, the director of secondary schools at the ministry, said that this is an introductory step, and that the language will be taught only in a few schools. “This is just a preliminary experiment, and it will be offered only in some schools in Tunis, Bizerte, and Nabeul,” he said.

Hedfi explained that there have been a number of requests for Turkish to be taught in high schools. “Some students asked for the Turkish language to be taught in their schools,” he stated.

This decision was made following a suggestion from the delegation visiting Tunisia with Turkish President Abdallah Gül two months ago. Aside from meeting with Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki and other high-ranking government officials, Gül also visited Sadiki secondary school – an institution that was originally constructed during the Ottoman era – located in downtown Tunis.

Hedfi clarified that Turkish language studies will not be mandatory. Other optional languages taught in Tunisian schools include Italian, German, Spanish, Chinese, and Russian. “Now Turkish will be added to the list,” Hedfi stated.

“The language will help those who plan on studying in Turkey, and it will open new horizons for our students,” Hedfi concluded.

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