TUNIS — The
International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Tuesday talks will continue with Tunisia
on a new loan program to aid the country as it faces a severe economic crisis.
اضافة اعلان
Fund officials had
“productive” discussions with Tunisian authorities over the past two weeks, and
talks “will continue over the coming weeks towards reaching a staff-level
agreement,” IMF mission chief Bjorn Rother said in a statement.
The North African
country has seen its economy crippled by a crisis exacerbated by the
coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, which has sent public debt
soaring.
Experts say the
government is seeking an aid package worth about two billion euros.
Rother praised
Tunisian officials for “making important progress with their economic agenda”
but said the nation faces a “challenging” outlook.
“Growth will
likely decelerate while higher international prices for energy and food are
adding to already high inflation and are increasing fiscal and external
deficits and debt,” he said. “Urgent measures are needed to reduce these
imbalances in a socially sustainable manner.”
The government of
President Kais Saied, who last year staged a dramatic power grab, has proposed
a reform package that includes freezing the public wage bill, cutting some
subsidies, and restructuring state firms.
Rother said that
in addition to reducing the growth of public wage costs, the country needs to
phase out energy subsidies with “regular price hikes,” and shore up tax
collection, while also strengthening the social safety net.
The powerful UGTT
trade union, which staged a nationwide public sector strike last month over
pay, has rejected “painful options” aimed at meeting IMF demands.
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