Rates for calling Tunisia from the US are ridiculously high compared to other countries and even to neighboring countries. Cheapest plans out there offer $0.45/minute for mobile and somewhere around $0.25/min for landlines. For neighboring countries, rates around $0.10/min for mobile are common.  For countries in Europe or Asia, we are taking few pennies per minute.  Why are rates for Tunisia so high? It is short-sighted policy to tax communications to death because such a policy hurts the economy as whole.  Fewer communications means fewer exchanges which translates into less economic activity.