Saudi Arabia to provide Tunisia $500m as soft loan and grant

Saudi Arabia will give Tunisia $500 million as a soft loan and a grant to help improve its public finances with the national budget suffering a $2-billion deficit,  the Saudi state-run news Agency SPA reports.

Tunisia is facing an acute economic crisis compounded by the pandemic coupled with a tense domestic political crisis. The North African country is facing a shortage of $2 billion dollars to supplement its national budget.

It has turned to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $1.9-billion credit facility but talks have hit roadblock with Tunisian authorities refusing a string of conditions that they believe are crossing the redline.

The Saudi news agency did not provide further details about the loan and grant. Before the talks with the IMF started in February 2023, Saudi Arabia, Libya and Algeria pledged to provide soft loans to be directed to Tunisia’s Central Bank.