Tunisia to announce 2023-2025 economic recovery plan soon: minister

Tunisia will soon announce an economic recovery plan for 2023-2025, Economy and Planning Minister Samir Said said on Sunday, as the north African country struggles to get out of a deep financial crisis.

Tunisia last week resumed talks with the International Monetary Fund on a loan package predicated on Tunis imposing painful and unpopular steps aimed at liberalising the economy.

The talks had ground to a halt on July 25 when President Kais Saied, faced with political paralysis, dismissed the cabinet, suspended parliament and assumed executive powers.

"Reviewing subsidies, reforms of state firms and fiscal policies are reforms that would restore the state's financial balance," Said said.

Last week, the powerful UGTT union rejected any plans that would include cutting subsidies, blocking reforms and complicating government efforts to reach a deal with IMF on a rescue package.

International donors have highlighted the need for broad popular support in Tunisia for reforms to help tackle corruption and waste, meaning Saied would likely need the backing of the UGTT, which represents 1 million workers in the country of 12 million people and wields huge political clout.

The IMF has urged Tunisia to slash subsidies and its bloated public sector wage bill as well as privatise loss-making state-owned enterprises - all steps that remain very unpopular with the public.

(Reuters)