Tunisia: IMF to disburse $400m to support fight against Coronavirus

The International Monetary Fund will shortly disburse $400 million to support Tunisia in its fight against the Coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement was made by Finance Minister Nizar Yaich on a private radio station. This sum of money will be disbursed in the coming two to three weeks, he added.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a teleconference with G20 on Monday: “We will massively step up emergency finance as nearly 80 countries are requesting our help.”

“We are working closely with the other international financial institutions to provide a strong coordinated response,” she added.

The pandemic has so far affected 114 people in Tunisia (74 imported cases and 39 domestic) and killed three, according to the Health Ministry. All the people who had returned to Tunisia from abroad had been quarantined and 10,514 are still under regular medical supervision.

To curb the fast spreading of the disease, authorities have imposed a nationwide curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.