Tunisia: five years after the "Arab Spring"

In Kasserine, the central city where recent protests began, more disaffected young men have threatened to kill themselves. Two were injured after trying to throw themselves off the roof of the local government building in fits of anger over the lack of jobs.

Others, including unemployed Yosri Adjili, have gone on hunger strike.

Tunisia's prime minister has said that the country's young democracy would be preserved "whatever the cost" and that it would take time to respond to young people's economic demands.

A new constitution, a political compromise between secular and Islamist parties and free elections have been praised as a model for transition in a region where the gun has often beat out the ballot box. But political progress has not been matched by economic advances.

"The political and economic situation in Tunisia is going from bad to worse. I don’t see any improvement since the 2011 revolution,” Nurddine Nasseri said.

“I want to be optimistic but it is just hard for me at the moment. My life is a disaster. I am married but can't afford a decent apartment.”

Unlike its oil-wealthy neighbours Libya and Algeria, Tunisia has few natural resources and the years of instability have crimped investment.

Three major attacks last year by Islamist militants -- against a museum in Tunis, tourists in a Sousse beach resort and a suicide bombing in the capital -- have especially hit the tourist industry, a key source of jobs and revenue.

"The political and economic situation of Tunisia is going worse to worse, terrorist attacks did not help,” said Hamza Nasri an unemployed graduate.

“Tourists and investors flee the country for lack of security. My country has invested only in tourism and I think it was an error from the beginning, Tunisia possesses other potential.”

University graduates comprise one-third of jobless Tunisians after student numbers increased. Mohamed Bouazizi was a graduate who had to sell fruit and vegetables to survive.

Those conditions are part of why even middle-class, educated Tunisians sometimes fall prey to Islamist militant recruiters seeking jihadist fighters for their ranks in Syria, Iraq and now Libya. More than 3,000 Tunisians are believed to be fighting in Islamist militant groups in Iraq and Syria.

“The state must find a solution for all our problems. We devoted years of our lives to study with hope to serve our country but we ended up unemployed, it's unacceptable,” said Nasser Abaidi, 34, who is an unemployed graduate.

“Young people are desperate, some of them think to leave the country, others join terrorists groups, this is unacceptable also. I feel that the stability of the old days is far away.”

"I am conscious that the political and economic situation in my country right now is dramatic” said Maroua Aichaoui, 26, an unemployed graduate.

“I hope the state enables the youth to bring the country out of its crisis."