The Tunisian education system, like that of many other Southern nations of intermediate wealth, finds itself pulled in opposing directions. While quantitative advances at different levels of instruction have been easily achieved, a reorientation towards qualitative matters is nowadays more than ever necessary. This article analyses developments engendered by recent reforms in the Tunisian education system. Reforms at the secondary level, and the perspectives that they open up in terms of an improvement in the quality of educational services for young people, receive special attention in this article. Radical changes in the traditional status of school inspectors are needed. Furthermore, a new national agency for monitoring and evaluating students' outcomes and schools' performance is indispensable. (Contains 4 tables, 2 figures and 1 note.)