São Paulo – Tunisian ambassador Nabil Lakhal will leave his post in Brasília after a year and a half in office and an increase in relations and trade exchanges between the two countries. A dinner was held at the Palestinian Embassy in Brasília last Friday (27) to mark his farewell and to celebrate the arrival of the ambassadors of Oman and Mauritania to the Brazilian mission.
To ANBA, Lakhal said relations between Brazil and Tunisia have experienced a “remarkable growth” driven by the shared will of both governments to diversify, intensify, and make more fruitful the economic exchanges “between our two friendly peoples.” He highlights, during his time in Brazil, various meetings, trips, and events in which the two countries participated and worked side by side, whether to address solutions to global challenges, such as the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty, or to promote the deepening of ties between the two countries.
Among these initiatives, he mentioned the participation of Tunisian tourism at the WTM Latin America fair and the presence of olive oil and date companies at the APAS Show and Anuga fairs in São Paulo earlier this year. He also highlighted meetings and visits by Tunisian ministers to Brazilian institutions and the inauguration in July 2024 of Tunisia’s first commercial and consular office in São Paulo, as a result of a memorandum of understanding signed with the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC).
“Thus, in 2024, Tunisian exports to Brazil reached TND 137 million (approximately USD 71 million), marking significant growth driven by concrete efforts to promote Tunisia’s main products, notably Tunisian olive oil, which has won several international awards. Exports of this olive oil to Brazil have increased by 119% over the past two years, making my country the fifth-largest supplier to Brazil,” Lakhal said, also recalling that the Brazilian government reduced import taxes on food products this year, which benefited Tunisian olive oil.
In 2024, Brazil exported USD 400.2 million to Tunisia, an increase of 5.4% compared to the previous year. In the opposite direction, Brazil imported USD 72.2 million, a rise of 14.7% in the same comparison.
Lakhal’s farewell, as he retires in September after more than 40 years of service, was held at a dinner at the Palestinian Embassy in Brasília. The event also marked the arrival of the ambassadors of Oman, Abdul Ghaffar bin Abdul Karim Al-Bulushi, and Mauritania, Ahmed Moctar Bouoceif.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
