Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fighting poverty at home, Ben Ali instituted reforms including the National Solidarity Fund which slashed the Tunisian poverty rate from 7.4% in 1990 to an estimated 3.8% in 2005. The National Solidarity Fund was part of a dual strategy to fight current and potential terrorism through economic assistance, development and the rule of law, but also increased opportunities for corruption and clientelism. The fund provided opportunities to those living in impoverished areas and are vulnerable to recruitment by terrorists. It was a critical element in the fight against terrorism. However, Tunisia continued to suffer from high unemployment, especially among youth.
Sadok Chaabane and the fast erasure of boundaries. On 1 July 1999 President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali designated him to supervise his election campaign, which was a very significant experience for him. After the presidential campaign, on 17 November 1999, President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali appointed him to one of the most important portfolios, Higher Education, under the Premiership of Mohamed Ghannouchi; on 4 September 2002, the department of Scientific Research was added to the Ministry, and the President of the Republic appointed him again to the Democratic Constitutional Rally’s Political Bureau. On 11 November 2004 he left the Government,