Italy is on the front line supporting development in the rural communities of southern Tunisia. The Italian Cooperation for Development Joint Committee has approved a payment of 5.1 million euros to the “Integrated Rural Development Programme in the Hazoua and Tamerza Delegations (Tozeur Governorate)”. The project, using experience gained by Italian Cooperation in Tunisia over the last 20 years, is part of a national strategy to improve living conditions of people in the frontier areas of southern Tunisia by combating desertification, improving production in the irrigated perimeters of the desert and diversifying and improving the income of the population. The strategy is based on a participatory approach and on improving the knowledge and skills of the institutions and civil society and achieving sustainable development in rural areas. The programme, in line with the country’s regional development priorities, will focus on the irrigated perimeters of the oases in Hazoua and Tamerza delegations of Tozeur Governorate. It will be carried out by the Commissariat Régional au Développement Agricole (CRDA) in Tozeur, a regional body of the Tunisian Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries.