The Employment and Vocational Training Ministry intends to put in place new procedures conducive to self-employment, said Director of Employment Promotion at the ministry Fayza Kallel. This includes a flat-rate taxation scheme (TND 100 to TND 200/year) and exemption from paying social insurance contributions as well as taxes in the first year of activity. The announcement was made at an information day held Wednesday by the Challenge Fund For Youth Employment (CFYE) on patterns of self-employment. The CFYE is a 7-year programme funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These measures are aimed to ease the launch of projects and adopt a remote payment mechanism via an electronic platform. The ministry seeks to foster the creation of enterprises by means of instituting incentices for entrepreneurs. These enterprises have to respond to social needs and contribute to cutting the unemployment rate. New mechanisms were put in place as part of training programmes which helped provide tailored trai ning, Fayza Kallel said. The ministry developed new training programmes in full harmony with the needs of the job market and the needs of trainees. The vocational training system provides a high employment potential, she added. The unemployment rate is higher among higher education graduates (nearly 20%), particularly inland. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse