“Harak” spokesman Mahmoud Ben Mabrouk said that “the Ministry of Trade and Export Development has failed to deal with the resurgence of the monopoly phenomenon”
The “July 25 Harak”, which supports Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed, called on the authorities to “eradicate the phenomenon of food monopoly”.
This is what emerges from a press conference hosted on Saturday in the capital Tunis by the spokesman of “Harak”, Mahmoud Ben Mabrouk.
Ben Mabrouk indicated that the Tunisian authorities must work to “identify solutions and eradicate the phenomenon of food monopoly”.
He added that “the Ministry of Trade and Export Development has failed to deal with the resurgence of the monopoly phenomenon.”
“Despite the intervention of the Head of State on many occasions and his calls to fight against monopoly and to channel the increase in prices, the fact remains that the phenomenon of the monopoly of foodstuffs continues, which has increased the high cost of living,” he said.
No comments have been issued by the Tunisian authorities on these statements so far (16:05 GMT). President Kaïs Saïed had repeatedly called for “launching a merciless war” against monopoly and speculation.
Last Wednesday, the National Institute of Statistics (INS) pointed out that inflation on an annual basis reached 10.3% in March, which constitutes a slight drop compared to February ( 10.4%).
Tunisia is undergoing an acute economic crisis fueled mainly by the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic as well as by the high cost of importing energy and basic products after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis.
Central Bank Governor Marouane Abassi said last January that the Bank expects inflation to rise in 2023 to around 11% from a rate of 8.3%. in 2022.
