The Tunisian Ministry of Technologies of Digital Communication and Economy is looking for a Bitcoin intern, according to a document posted on its Facebook page, which was subsequently tweeted out by Bitoasis co-founder Ola Doudin. The intern will research the impact cryptocurrencies could have on the country's economy, and will need to develop perspectives on Bitcoin and blockchain technology.
Awesome! Tunisian gov calling for engineers/interns to experiment with bitcoin/blockchain tech cc: @cmschroed @fadig pic.twitter.com/QmmV48lOTw
— Ola Doudin (@odoudin) July 22, 2015
The short recruitment notice specifies that the intern will research advantages and disadvantages of utilizing Bitcoin, analyze the effects of Bitcoin on the banking system, and present blockchain applications that are being developed regarding various issues, such as privacy, security, freedom, transparency and more.
Based on the document, it does not seem that the Tunisian government is in an advanced stage of actually developing Bitcoin-related projects. The internship merely concerns an initial exploratory phase.
It does, of course, confirm that the Tunisian government has taken note of Bitcoin and blockchain technology, and wants to learn more about it. This is noteworthy, especially since the governmental body seems interested in more than the involved risks alone.
The Tunisian government is not the first national government to show interest in the opportunities presented by Bitcoin and blockchain technology. In what was probably the biggest step a national government has made into the Bitcoin space to date, the Honduran government earlier this year confirmed it will build a land registry initiative on the Bitcoin blockchain.