Tunisia: Economy Grew in Third Quarter of 2022

Boats enter Al Ataya Port in Kerkennah Islands, off Sfax, Tunisia, October 23, 2022. REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui
Boats enter Al Ataya Port in Kerkennah Islands, off Sfax, Tunisia, October 23, 2022. REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui
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Tunisia: Economy Grew in Third Quarter of 2022

Boats enter Al Ataya Port in Kerkennah Islands, off Sfax, Tunisia, October 23, 2022. REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui
Boats enter Al Ataya Port in Kerkennah Islands, off Sfax, Tunisia, October 23, 2022. REUTERS/Jihed Abidellaoui

Tunisia's economy grew by 2.9% in the third quarter of this year, driven by growth in the services sector, the state statistics institute said on Tuesday.

In the same period last year, growth was 1.7%.

“Over the three months from July to September, the gross domestic product increased by 2.9% on an annual basis, marking an acceleration compared to the two previous quarters (respectively at 2.3% and 2.6%),” it said.

“Despite a difficult global environment and record inflation, economic activity is continuing its recovery dynamic after the 2020 health crisis; a process that is still incomplete, since the national income still remains below its level at the end of 2019,” it added.

Tunisian Minister of Tourism Mohamed Moez Belhassine also announced that the tourism sector welcomed this year more than 5.4 million tourists till November 10, a huge increase (174 percent) compared to the same period last year.

Despite the positive developments in the sector, the number falls short of the influx of tourists in 2019.



World Bank Redirects Funds Towards Lebanon Emergency Aid

Flames rise from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Flames rise from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
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World Bank Redirects Funds Towards Lebanon Emergency Aid

Flames rise from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Flames rise from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

The World Bank announced on Thursday that it was redirecting funds originally earmarked for development programs in Lebanon towards emergency aid for people displaced by Israeli bombardment of the country.

"The World Bank is activating emergency response plans to be able to repurpose resources in the portfolio to respond to the urgent needs of people in Lebanon," said a statement from the US-based multilateral institution.

The multilateral institution currently has $1.5 billion in funding for programs in Lebanon. Part of this amount will be redirected.

Since September 23, more than 1,000 people have been killed in an Israeli air-and-ground campaign on Lebanon that has targeted armed group Hezbollah in the south and east of the country, with strikes expanding to include the capital Beirut.

Thousands have been displaced since the bombing began, and the funds would be used to provide aid to those populations, the World Bank said.

"This would include emergency support to displaced people that could be deployed through a digital platform the World Bank helped put in place during the Covid epidemic," the statement said.