Prime Minister’s Office : “Work Is Underway to Restructure Several Public Services”

The Prime Minister’s Office has announced, in response to two questions submitted by MP Saber Masmoudi regarding the situation of the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data and the Access to Information Authority, that work is currently underway — within the framework of new approaches — to restructure several public services.

This process is based on an assessment of their performance, with the aim of ensuring efficiency and sound management of public funds, while strengthening gains in the field of rights and freedoms, in line with the provisions of the Tunisian Constitution.

Regarding the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data, the Prime Minister’s Office notes in its written response, published on the official website of Parliament, that many provisions of Organic Law No. 63 of 2004 (on personal data protection) are no longer suited to technological advances or to the evolution of Tunisia’s legislative framework.

It cites, for example, the inclusion in the Authority’s Council of a representative of the Council of Advisors — an institution that has since been dissolved — as well as other provisions that now require amendment.

The Prime Minister’s Office adds that, in comparative administrative systems, approaches to personal data protection vary: some countries establish councils or national commissions, while others rely on specialized or unified authorities. The composition of these bodies also differs: expanded councils (18 members in the French model), streamlined councils (4 members in the Italian model), or single-member structures (Swiss model).

It recalls that the law establishing the Tunisian National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data provides, in Article 78, for an expanded council of 15 members appointed for a three-year term. The latest council was appointed under Government Decree No. 230 of 2021, dated 16 April 2021 — meaning that the legal mandate of its members expired on 16 April 2024.

The Prime Minister’s Office further notes that all state institutions work to ensure respect for personal data and the protection of privacy, through multiple and integrated approaches.

These approaches include aligning legislation with international standards, strengthening relevant actors according to efficiency criteria, and implementing measures that combine prevention, awareness, education, and enforcement.

Their implementation is entrusted to various public bodies according to their competences, within the constitutional and institutional framework.

After recalling the relevant legal texts, the Office highlights that, in order to strengthen personal data protection — and in line with best international practices, particularly the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) — Circular No. 18 of 12 October 2022 was issued to enhance data protection within public institutions.

The circular introduced several measures, including the requirement that every public body appoint a Data Protection Officer and develop a comprehensive mapping of all personal data processing activities according to their purposes.

Regarding access to information (in response to a question from the same MP), the Prime Minister’s Office stresses that all state bodies work to guarantee this right, with the aim of encouraging public participation in civic life, reinforcing transparency and accountability, preventing and combating corruption, and building trust between the administration and its users.

This effort relies on digitalisation, open data initiatives, classification of administrative documents, simplification of procedures, and the review of public policies, through approaches combining awareness-raising, capacity building, support, appeals, and sanctions.

The Office also recalls Articles 38 and 55 of the Tunisian Constitution, which enshrine the right of access to information and the duty to protect rights and freedoms, as well as established administrative court jurisprudence upholding this principle.

Organic Law No. 22 of 2016, dated 20 March 2016, strengthened the legislative framework on transparency by requiring public bodies to proactively publish information and make it available to the public, and by obliging them to provide information in response to access requests, with penalties for deliberate obstruction.

The same law specifies, in Article 37, that the Council of the Access to Information Authority is composed of nine members appointed for a single, non-renewable six-year term, and elected by members of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People according to the procedures and deadlines set by law.

The Prime Minister’s Office indicates that the Council has been without a president since 27 February 2020 and without a vice-president since 20 May 2024. In accordance with Article 50 of the law, the lack of quorum has made it impossible for the Council to legally convene. As a result, payment of monthly compensation for reimbursable expenses to the remaining members has been suspended, pursuant to the “work completed” principle set out in Article 41 of the Public Accounting Code.

The Office also notes that the method for selecting members of the Access to Information Authority — through election by Parliament — differs from that of most other independent bodies, whether enshrined in the Constitution or established by other laws, whose members are generally appointed by the President of the Republic. It therefore considers a revision of the legal texts necessary to ensure coherence and effectiveness.

It is worth noting that MP Saber Masmoudi submitted two written questions to the Prime Minister’s Office last October regarding the current situation of the Access to Information Authority and the urgent need to reactivate the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data.