Brussels, 08/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - In July of this year, the EU will announce the exact amount of its financial support to Tunisia over the period 2014-2020 under the new European neighbourhood instrument (ENI), the spokesperson to European Commissioner Stefan Füle told the Tunisian media on Wednesday 7 May.
“The European subsidies will be examined in June in the framework of the ENI committee and will be adopted in July 2014”, announced Peter Stano (our translation throughout). “The level of the subsidy will be determined on the basis of the progress made by Tunisia in the democratic transition process”. He added that once they are adopted, these subsidies “will be announced publicly and officially”. The ENI, which was adopted at the end of March of this year, has a budget of €15.4 billion. “Subsidies, for each country and each year, are set indicatively by the services of the EU and subsequently discussed with the European Parliament”, the spokesperson explained.
An influential electronic medium, Webmanagercenter, asks one question: “why so much tension” between the Commission and Tunisia? It finds that the statements made on either side, particularly after the session of the Association Council on 15 April, “are frustrating in the sense that they announce nothing specific at a triple political and socio-economic level”. The publication cites four factors in this “tension”. Firstly, an agenda which is weakening the decision-making capability of a Europe in the middle of its institutional renewal process. The second, it argues, is the “adoption by the European Commission on 8 April 2014 of a new regulation” on access for imports of fruit and vegetables from third countries, including Tunisia. Tunisian exports of olive oil, citrus fruit, dates, seafood and early fruit and vegetables could suffer from this. The same subject has also led to a strong reaction from Morocco, which is more directly affected by the measure. The third reason “has to do with the EU's wait-and-see attitude, having failed to accompany the enthusiasm with which it welcomed the revolt of the Tunisians of 14 January 2011 with commensurate mass assistance”. The Tunisians are “disappointed that the Europeans have granted significant aid to Ukraine of €1 billion (…) whilst Tunisia, ten years after the signature of its agreement (1995) has only been granted some €485 million since 2011, 60% of which in the form of budgetary support”, the journal wrote. This, it suggests, explains why the new head of the Tunisian government, Mehdi Jomaa, has so far declined to visit Brussels and has devoted his foreign trips to other, more active, donors, such as the United States, the Gulf states and capitals of various EU member states.
The Tunisians feel that the member states, particularly Rome, Paris and Berlin, are more committed in their support for Tunisia. The new head of the Italian government, Matteo Renzi, chose Tunisia for his first official trip outside his country (4 March), and there announced substantial assistance whilst making a “strong political gesture” of support. France and Germany also made a politically significant gesture with a joint visit of their foreign ministers, on 24 and 25 April. In Tunis, Laurent Fabius and Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced that they would be convening a conference of donors. This will take place in September, but the venue has not yet been decided upon. France has also announced the reconversion of a proportion of bilateral debt. On a visit to Paris by Mr Jomaa on 30 April, the French President proposed additional aid to re-establish security in the country, as the Tunisian Army is having to face AQIM (Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb) groups and other militia on the borders with Algeria and Libya. The French aid will be in the form of military equipment, particularly helicopters, the country's media report. (FB)