Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Saoussen BOULEKBACHE
Published on 2024-03-19 09:30:41
Bassem Ennaïfer: “The Foreign Exchange Code will facilitate financial transactions…”
“In 2024, the external debt service will increase by 40% compared to last year, reaching 12.3 billion dinars. This increase is a record.” Speaking on a radio program, Bassem Ennaïfer, a financial analyst, further specified that by the end of 2023, external debt services had increased by 160% and reached 4.6 billion dinars, compared to 1.7 billion dinars during the same period a year earlier.
This increase, according to Ennaïfer, is due to the repayment of the amount of 898 million euros, approximately 3 billion dinars, from the 850 million euro eurobond, repaid on February 17, with additional interest of 47.8 million euros.
Ennaïfer also mentioned the amendment of the Foreign Exchange Code, indicating that it will facilitate financial transactions, especially for large companies. He also mentioned that the elimination of authorizations will take place gradually.
Construction: “Late payment condemns the sector”
“Between 20 and 30% of the players in the construction and public works sector in Tunisia have disappeared,” said Majdi Boudokhane, a member of the executive board of the National Federation of Construction and Public Works Companies. He explained that they have left Tunisia for other African countries or filed for bankruptcy. According to him, this phenomenon is due to the negative impact on state tenders.
Boudokhane also stated that this situation resulted from the state’s failure to pay suppliers on time, leading to the bankruptcy of several companies in the sector.
The executive board member of the National Federation of Construction and Public Works Companies announced that “the state is currently paying companies, even if it is at a slow pace.” He also mentioned that the state’s commitments to the sector have decreased by 400 million dinars, from 600 to 200 million dinars.
Financial Inclusion: “Boosting the national economy and enhancing the investment climate”
The bill on combating financial exclusion will contribute to increasing the number of bank and postal accounts in Tunisia, as noted by some economists and financiers. This project will provide better access to financial and banking services for vulnerable and marginalized social classes, disabled persons, and microenterprises. According to Abdeljalil Heni, vice-president of the Parliamentary Finance Commission, “the bill focuses on four main areas: supporting access and use of financial services, strengthening oversight of the financial, banking, and insurance sectors, enhancing consumer protection in financial services and financial education, and rationalizing cash payments.”
Submitted to the Parliamentary Finance and Budget Commission, this project is part of the economic reform program announced by the government aimed at boosting the national economy and improving the investment climate. It also aims to develop the legal and institutional framework regulating the sector to strengthen the banking inclusion of Tunisians, especially disadvantaged categories, low-income individuals, and persons with disabilities. It also aims to help small and micro-enterprises access banking and financial services more easily.
Read the original article(French) on La Presse Tunisie
