Tunisia polled nine of the 13 votes at a CAF executive committee meeting in Cairo on Monday. Zimbabwe won three votes and a joint bid from Zambia and Malawi got one, the CAF said.
Voting was carried out after the three candidates made presentations to the committee.
Tunisia will be hosting the finals for the third time, after 1965 and 1994. None of the other candidates have ever hosted the biennial continental championship.
Tunisia had been favourites to win, having the best bid in terms of stadia, hotel facilities and infrastructure.
Tunisian football has meanwhile risen to prominence in the last decade, with the national side reaching the 1998 World Cup finals and its clubs dominating the three African competitions.
The 2002 African Nations Cup finals will be held in Mali.
Reuters
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has chosen Tunisia as host nation for the African Nations Cup finals in 2004.
