Manama: Tunisia's new constitution will be ready by October 23 , the Speaker of the Constituent Assembly has said.
Mustapha Ben Jaafar's announcement confirms the deadline initially put forward last year following the election of the assembly to draft the constitution.
The assembly and the government formed soon after the national legislative elections on October 2011 had come under fire for not setting a deadline for their terms, even though the deputies said that their work would not exceed one year.
Ben Jaafar said that the Constituent Assembly committee tasked with the constitution has held 193 meetings since November 13, denying charges of slow action and procrastination.
No date has been set yet for the next legilsative and presidential elections.
Tunisia ousted its former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011 following a popular uprising.
Interim cabinets ran the country until a government was formed by three political formations, led by Al Nahda, the moderate Islamist party, that dominated the multi-party votes.