Tunisia Abandons Daylight Saving Time in 2009

Published 16-Mar-2009

Tunisia will not pursue daylight saving time in 2009 and will remain on Central European Time (CET), which is one hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time, or UTC+1 hour. The Tunisian government recently issued a communiqué about the confirmed cancellation of daylight saving time in 2009.

Different Views on Government’s Decision

The Tunisian government sought public opinion on the daylight saving issue. There were many people who supported the government’s decision, especially those believed that daylight saving time was detrimental to health and contributed to sleep deprivation. Some people believed that the extra hour of sunlight in the afternoon created an imbalance to the day during the daylight saving schedule. There were also those who said that daylight saving time did not contribute to energy savings in the country.

Those who were against the government’s decision to abolish the daylight saving arrangement believed that daylight saving time did in fact save energy for many as the extra hour of sunlight later in the day meant less usage of artificial lighting and electricity. Others remained neutral about the decision.

Time Zones

Tunisia has observed daylight saving time in previous years. For example, the country observed the schedule on an annual basis from 2005 until 2008. It was on Central European Summer Time (CEST), which is UTC +2 hours, during the daylight saving period. It is on Central European Time (CET), which is UTC +1 hour, when during the non-daylight saving period. The country will remain on CET in 2009 as it will not observe daylight saving time.

Dates of Daylight Saving Time 2005–2008

These are the dates Daylight Saving Time started and ended in Tunisia since 2005.

Year	Start date	End date	Daylight duration
2005	May 1	Sep 30	21 weeks and 5 days
2006	Mar 26	Oct 29	31 weeks
2007	Mar 25	Oct 28	31 weeks
2008	Mar 30	Oct 26	30 weeks

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