History of the Maghreb since independence
Over the last sixty years, the Maghreb has witnessed major events that have profoundly altered its structures, institutional frameworks and societies. More than half a century of history is presented here, from independence to the period following the Arab Spring, offering a political, cultural, economic and societal panorama to highlight the permanent changes, developments and revolutions that have marked the Maghreb in recent decades. The authors have opted for an unprecedented, global, cross-cutting approach to the three countries of the central Maghreb (Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), in order to gain a better understanding of their recent history and current situation. They present complex and dynamic societies, with their heritages and constantly renewed challenges: the rise of civil society, religious extremism, the capture of economic resources, reflection on the principle of democracy, the place of women, the migratory crisis, etc. All these issues are presented, analysed and discussed thanks to the contribution of recent work by social science specialists, in order to offer relevant keys to understanding a geographical area and its recent history. This first comprehensive work on the history of the Maghreb since independence helps us to understand the driving forces and dynamics of the states and societies common to these three countries.
Karima Dirèche is a qualified history teacher and Director of Research at CNRS/TELEMMe. Her work focuses on the history of contemporary Maghrebian societies in their cultural, religious and migratory dimensions. Her research explores the question of religious minorities in the Maghreb (Catholics, Jews and neo-evangelicals today) and their political and religious controversies; the Berber dimension in its relationship with politics since independence; and national historical narratives in the light of Islamist and Berberist movements.
Nessim Znaien is a Junior-Professor at the University of Marburg (Germany) and holds a PhD in Contemporary History from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne in 2017. A former long-term fellow at the Institut de recherche sur le Maghreb contemporain (IRMC) and former temporary teaching and research associate at the University of Aix-Marseille from 2017 to 2020, he is the author of “Raisins de la domination. Une histoire sociale de l’alcool en Tunisie sous le Protectorat” (2021) and a “histoire du Maghreb depuis les indépendances” (2023).
Moderator: Isabelle Werenfels is a Senior Fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, where she also headed the Africa and Middle East Group for five years. She has published numerous works in German, English and French on the development of the Maghreb and Euro-Maghreb relations. She is currently President of MECAM’s International Scientific Council.
Date: 08 December 2023, at🕖10h:30
Venue: Bibliothèque Nationale de Tunisie دارالكتب الوطنيّة ( 1008, Boulevard du 9 Avril 1938, Tunis)