Ball now in Tunisia's court regarding $1.9bn IMF bailout
Officials from the IMF, the World Bank and Italy have all commented on the proposed bailout package this week as a Tunisian delegation joins the spring meeting of the multilateral institutions in Washington.
The ball is now in the Tunisian government’s court as lawmakers from the North African country meet officials in Washington this week to discuss a $1.9 billion bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Tunisia is facing a dire economic crisis with inflation at 11% and food becoming increasingly scarce. This scarcity is compounded by water rationing in many parts of the country due to a drought, which is now in its fourth year.
Tunisia reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF in October on the bailout package, but there has since been opposition to the bailout on the Tunisian side.
Conditions of the IMF package are that Tunisia reduce energy and food subsidies, restructure public companies and reduce the public wage bill. Tunisia’s public administration sector is one of the world’s largest and accounts for about a third of the country’s budget. Restructuring companies in the sector will likely lead to significant layoffs.
