The President of the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts, Samir Majoul, called on the government to activate the state of emergency to salvage the economy.
Earlier, the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) predicted a sharp economic contraction during Q2 of 2020, ranging between 10 and 12 percent, with the unemployment rate predicted to increase to 21.6 percent, a rise of no less than 274,500 unemployed citizens.
Majoul called for creating the necessary conditions to revive the economy by expediting major reforms, boost development and support all sectors.
This year, the Tunisian economy recorded its worst result since 1997, and the head of National Institute of Statistics, Adnen Lassoued, revealed that the economy fell over 21 percent.
The contraction hit major sectors, affecting mainly the service industry.
Hotels, restaurants, and cafes contracted 77.5 percent and the transport sector 51.4 percent, in addition to the 15.8 percent contraction of the non-marketed service sector, mainly paid by the administration.
Meanwhile, the added value of industries dropped 27 percent due to the noticeable decline in the production of exported industries, similar to the textile and clothing sector, which suffered the largest loss of 42 percent.
The exports of the mechanical and electrical industries decreased 35.9 percent, and the added value of the building materials saw a significant decline of 38.4 percent, following the sharp drop in construction.
Economic and financial experts believe an economic recovery depends on the ability to control the coronavirus pandemic in Tunisia and its partner European countries.
Tunisian economist Ezzeddine Saidane stressed that overcoming the economic downturn requires large financial resources that the country does not possess over the authorities’ failure to resort to the international financial market as a result of the continuous reduction of the credit rating since 2011.
Saidane noted that relying on local resources requires exceptional solutions, such as adopting a different monetary policy.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was not satisfied with this financial policy that directed development and investment funds to bridge the budget deficit over the past years.
He said that this policy puts the Tunisian economy in a vicious circle.
