Tunisia signs $500 million loan guarantee agreement with US

Tunis : Tunisia yesterday signed a $500 million loan guarantee agreement with the United States that will help it access international capital markets, the two countries said.

A US State Department statement said the agreement would “allow Tunisia to access up to $500 million in affordable financing from international capital markets.”

“It is designed to support Tunisia as it pursues important economic reforms that will provide the foundation for growth and prosperity, while also furthering Tunisia’s ability to access global capital markets,” it
added.

Tunisian Finance Minister Slim Chaker also announced the agreement.

The five-year loan deal carried a two percent interest rate, well below market rates of six or seven per cent, he told the private Mosaique FM radio station.

The loan guarantee is the third of its kind issued by the United States for Tunisia since 2012, a year after the Arab Spring uprising that ousted an autocratic regime.

“The earlier guarantees for $485m in 2012 and $500m in 2014 were successful in facilitating Tunisian access to global capital markets,” said the State Department.

“Since 2011, the United States has provided more than $750m in other types of foreign assistance to Tunisia,” it
added.

Since the revolution, Tunisia has faced numerous Islamist attacks against its lucrative tourist industry and security forces which have affected is struggling
economy.

Economic growth slowed to 0.8pc last year from 2.3pc in 2014, and unemployment nationwide stood at 15pc at the end of last
year.

In May, the International Monetary Fund approved a $2.9 billion loan to Tunisia on Friday to help the country implement economic and financial reforms.