Tunis, 6 October 2022 (ECA) –An ECA delegation led by Zuzana Brixiova Schwidrowski, Director of the ECA Office for North Africa, visited the Tunisian capital Tunis on 3-5 October 2022.
The ECA team met with senior policy makers including Minister of Economy and Planning Samir Saïed; Minister of Industry, Mines and Energy Neila Nouira Gonji; Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries Mahmoud Elyes Hamza and Minister of Employment and Vocational Training Nasreddine Nsibi. The team also met with high-level officials at the Ministry of Trade and Export Development, the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Central Bank of Tunisia.
Ms. Schwidrowski stressed the importance of the upcoming joint, Intergovernmental Committee of Senior Officials and Experts of the ECA Offices for North and West Africa and Expert Group Meeting, scheduled to take place under the themes “Food and energy security in North and West Africa amid multiple crises” and “Crisis Resilience and Development Sustainability in North and West Africa” on 1-3 November 2022 in Marrakech (Morocco).
Discussions with the Tunisian officials included the office’s technical support to Tunisia as the country is facing COVID-19, climate change and the Ukraine-Russia crises, and its work in support to the government’s current economic and social priorities, especially in areas such as national strategy design and implementation, employment, digitalisation, renewable energy, innovation, SMEs, as well as food and energy security.
Their exchanges also included options to extend the existing collaboration to areas such as macroeconomic modelling for better forecasting and reform monitoring, assessing the impact of COVID-19 on Tunisian enterprises and the Ukraine-Russia war on food security; job creation, especially for women and youths; digitalisation; innovation; the circular economy; agricultural policy for an increased food autonomy; the promotion of youth entrepreneurship in the agricultural sector; mining; clean energy; water scarcity and social protection.
Last but not least, the ECA delegation met with the UN Resident Coordinator for Tunisia Arnaud Peral to discuss next steps for a strengthened UN cooperation in support to Tunisia (water scarcity, youth, green economy), and to brief him on the introductory workshop on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) held for the benefit of Libyan stakeholders in Tunis on 3-7 October 2022.
Note to editors:
ECA is one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Its Office for North Africa aims to support the development of seven countries across the sub-region (Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Tunisia and Sudan) by helping them formulate and implement policies and programs that support their economic and social transformation.
Recent ECA support to Tunisia has included assistance for the design and finalization of the national strategy for the AfCFTA, research on the impact of COVID-19 on Tunisian enterprises and work on best practices in job creation and active labour market policies.
The Intergovernmental Committee of Senior Officials and Experts (ICSOE) is a yearly statutory meeting aimed at taking stock of achievements, assessing economic and social conditions across North Africa and provide strategic orientations for the ECA Office for North Africa upcoming work programme.
Issued by:
Communications Section
Economic Commission for Africa
PO Box 3001
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Tel: +251 11 551 5826
E-mail: eca-info@un.org