Hédi Amara Nouira

Prime Minister of Tunisia (1970–1980)

الهادي نويرة

Prime Minister of TunisiaIn office
2 November 1970 – 23 April 1980PresidentHabib BourguibaPreceded byBahi LadghamSucceeded byMohamed Mzali Personal detailsBorn5 April 1911
Monastir, French TunisiaDied25 January 1993(1993-01-25) (aged 81)
La Marsa, TunisiaSpouseAssia Ben Hmida

Hédi Amara Nouira (5 April 1911 – 25 January 1993) was a Tunisian politician. He served as the 2nd Prime Minister of Tunisia between 1970 and 1980.

Biography

Hédi Nouira was born in Monastir and trained as a lawyer. He served as one of the founders of the Neo-Destour party and was a colleague of Habib Bourguiba. He was imprisoned for anti-colonial activities by the French from 1938 to 1943, but later represented the Neo-Destour during negotiations with France towards Tunisian independence in 1950.^[1]

Following independence in 1956, Nouira was appointed as finance minister^[1] and was later appointed the governor of the Central Bank of Tunisia in 1958.^[2] Following the failure of a short-lived Socialist experiment in the 1960s, Nouira liberalised the economy during the 1970s. In 1970, the then governor of the Central Bank, Nouira was appointed prime minister. The most decisive factor in Nouira's appointment seemed to be his commitment to private initiative as well as his financier's background.

Having been named as President Bourguiba's successor in 1974, Nouira's tenure as prime minister saw him increasingly take the roles of the former, who was suffering from ill health. At the same time, he was criticised by workers and dissidents for his harsh stances on labor and opposition to multiparty politics.^[1]

He retired from politics in 1980 after suffering a stroke. Nouira died on 25 January 1993, after suffering from an undisclosed illness.^[1]

Family

His younger brother, Habib Nouira, served as Tunisian Ambassador to Iraq, Kuwait, Syria and Egypt.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Hedi Nouira Is Dead; The Former Premier Of Tunisia Was 81". The New York Times. 27 January 1993. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
^ "List of presidents of the Central Bank of Tunisia" (PDF) (in French). Retrieved 8 November 2022.
^ "Tunisia-Habib Nouira dies". Tunisie Numerique. 20 February 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2024.