According to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the European Union is considering providing more than 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion) in aid to Tunisia to help the country’s devastated economy recover, restore public finances, and address the migratory situation.
Speaking in Tunisia, von der Leyen stated that macro-financial assistance worth 900 million euros and immediate budget help worth 150 million euros might be ready “as soon as the necessary agreement is found,” without going into further detail.
Additionally, she stated that Tunisia would get 100 million euros from the EU this year for border control, search and rescue efforts, anti-smuggling operations, and returns “rooted in respect for human rights.”
The EU and other significant donors to Tunisia have thus far made it a condition of their assistance that the nation completes a loan agreement with the IMF, but President Kais Saied has rejected crucial reforms outlined in that plan.
According to Saied, his own government’s proposal to the IMF to reduce subsidies and restructure state-owned businesses in order to assure lenders that they would be paid back risks sparking a social explosion. It might take months longer to negotiate any new agreement based on many reforms that have been suggested.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte accompanied von der Leyen to Italy, which serves as the primary entry point for migrants coming from Tunisia across the Mediterranean.
Meloni, who recently traveled to Tunisia as well, has pushed the IMF to loosen the loan’s requirements. A joint declaration between the EU and Tunisia, which she praised as a significant step “towards the creation of a real partnership,” had already been signed, she added on Sunday.
Before the end of June’s European Council, she said, there was “an important window of opportunity” to complete the aid accord. It was unclear if Tunisia would still need to complete its IMF program in order to meet the requirements.
Von der Leyen outlined a number of longer-term European initiatives to support Tunisia’s economy, including ongoing projects for a 300 million euro renewable energy power export project and a 150 million euro digital cable link to Europe.
In order to help young Tunisians develop skills that might be utilized to strengthen the Tunisian economy, she said the EU would also increase chances for them to study, work, and train in the EU.
