We do everything in Tunisia to deserve our status as an underdeveloped country, and this is not limited only to the fact that we like to live in unsanitary conditions. Governments and citizens have decided that things must remain in the precarious state they have always been in. How, you ask? In particular by reducing the role of the architect and town planner to a simple formality. (Illustration :
Ilyes Bellagha *
Wherever they care about the well-being of their fellow citizens, leaders put architects and town planners at the forefront, except in our country where, having neglected our living environment, we have missed the train of development. In fact, we missed two crucial meetings for our country, those of January 14, 2011 and July 25, 2021, major political changes which did not translate, for citizens, into a notable improvement in their living environment.
Citizens have the right to a quality life, and this right perhaps deserves a dedicated ministry. Understand well, here, architects are prisoners of a ministry, Equipment and Housing, which confuses work and work, design and work, and you only need to see the dreary and sad building where it is housed to measure the the importance he places on the quality of life.
For his 25e elective congress, the National Order of Architects must also take stock of its achievements, which are rather rare, and its failures, which are quite numerous. And his greatest failure lies in the fact that, through his inaction, he made himself complicit in the marginalization of the profession.
Architects, wake up! No prince on his white horse will come to save you. Tunisia belongs to you more than to the ministers who succeed one another, and let the general situation in the country deteriorate further. You must fight against the ignorance and incompetence of leaders, some of whom should be removed for the good of the community. How else can we explain that with so many architects on the market we have such an ugly and mediocre urban landscape. Remind me if I’ve missed a single work worth mentioning that was made in the last few decades!
Is it also conceivable that in Tunisia, spontaneous housing represents such a significant proportion of the urban landscape? According to available data, almost half of the national housing stock is made up of informal housing, that is to say unauthorized or even anarchic housing. This scourge has worsened, going from 12% in 2010 to nearly 48% in 2021. These spontaneous habitats have developed mainly due to the absence of adequate and accessible housing for a large part of the population. Housing designed by architects, whose role is fundamental in establishing a pleasant living environment. Aren’t they the ones who design functional, aesthetic and sustainable buildings and urban spaces, meeting the needs of society? By integrating local traditions and history into their designs, are they not preserving the cultural identity of the community? Through innovation, by introducing new technologies and innovative materials, such as those guaranteeing energy efficiency, do they not improve the quality of life of citizens? Don’t they also play a crucial role in the design of green buildings, thereby reducing the carbon footprint and promoting sustainable development? Do they not, in doing so, contribute to the creation of accessible and inclusive public spaces, promoting social interaction and community cohesion?
In short, the architect shapes not only the built environment, but also social and cultural dynamics and contributes to the building of a nation and the development of a civilization. This is why its role must be valued in a society that aspires to development. But this is unfortunately not the case in Tunisia, where architects are considered the fifth wheel of the cart.
This is why the Council of the Order of Architects, which is preparing to hold its 26e congress, has a lot of work to do to restore the image of architects and, first of all, to establish them as artists above all, confronted with an administration that is both deaf and talkative, which multiplies decrees and orders including the only The goal is to marginalize architects and reduce their role in society to simple sidekicks with no real impact on the lives of their compatriots.
* Architect.
