The governor of the central bank of Tunisia (BCT), Marouane Abbasi, declared this Wednesday, January 04, during a press conference, that the inflation rate reached in the 90s, 15%, with a rate growth of 5%.
This rate reached 11% in 2017, and should exceed 10% (11%) by the end of 2023, he estimated, quoted by Jawhara.
The head of the Issuing Institute also stressed that the major problem facing the Tunisian economy lies in the low growth rate and the decline in all economic indicators, due to the net shutdown of the economy imposed by the Coronavirus pandemic.
He also lamented the damage caused to the agricultural sector, because of the rainfall deficit, and the drop in phosphate production which fell from 8 million tonnes before the revolution, to 3.6 million tonnes in 2021, despite strong demand, on the world market, as well as the drop in tourist receipts which have not yet reached the figures of 2019 (reference year).
Marouane Abbasi also indicated that the Russian war in Ukraine changed the form of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and contributed to the postponement of Tunisia obtaining credit.
He also attributed this postponement to Tunisia’s failure to complete specific laws, such as the finance law for the year 2023, and the law on the civil service, noting that Tunisia’s file will be very soon, again, before the IMF.
The Governor of the BCT also added that the high inflation rate in Europe has prompted the European Union to change its monetary policy, and pushed it toward economic decline, which could impact the volume of investments. during the current year.
