Minister of Economy and Planning Samir Saïed said that the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) remains important, and if Tunisia fails to reach an agreement with the IMF or resorts to another alternative, the country's sovereign rating will be low.

During a plenary session held on Friday to examine the draft statute relating to the approval of Tunisia's accession to the agreement establishing the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Mr Saïed added that Tunisia could not resort to the international market to get into debt, stressing that the agreement was necessary to have the means to implement the development plan.

The Minister went on to say that the government had drawn up proposals that would be improved in line with the recommendations of the President of the Republic. "We hope to reach an agreement with the IMF as soon as possible.

He recalled that the government has begun to implement reforms based on an approach that takes into account low-income groups.

On the issue of joining the BRICS group, the Minister indicated that the size of the Tunisian economy did not make it possible to join it, stressing that Tunisia was not ruling out any grouping with which it could operate in its interests, including BRICS.

BRICS is a group comprising several countries. It abbreviates the names of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It has emerged as a competing economic force for several groups, including the G20.

In this respect, the Minister stressed that the volume of our trade with these countries is relatively modest, pointing out that Tunisia's geographical position requires it to have distinguished relations with Europe, the EU and Africa, which represents a major opportunity, despite the low level of our trade with this continent, at 3%.

He stressed that the use of the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) will provide an additional means for economic players to identify appropriate financing, given that competitors in Africa have financing mechanisms, but financing in Tunisia is a relatively weak factor.

Tunisia has a Tunisia-Africa strategy, given the significant opportunities in Africa which, although affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the growth rate will be around 4%. in 2023 and 4.3% in 2024.

The African market calls for a complementary plan to step up the presence of Tunisian companies in Africa, either through exports or direct investment.

The Minister specified that there are 15 priority African destinations and 5 sectors with investment opportunities. These are the agri-food, construction, public works, health, technology and education sectors.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse