Brussels, 09/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - The international conference on investment in Tunisia, which took place in Tunis on Monday 8 September, enjoyed strong participation from government representatives and those of regional and international institutions - including the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) - as well as from large private sector companies. The EU was represented by Michel Barnier, Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for the Internal Market and Services, and by Philippe de Fontaine Vive, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB). France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls also attended, as did other European government ministers. The presence of the prime ministers of both Morocco and Algeria at the event was striking in that it signified commitment from a Maghreb dimension. There were proposals for 22 large projects (including four public-private partnerships) in infrastructure, job creation and technology sectors.
During the conference, the EIB committed - in the words of de Fontaine Vive - “very concrete support to the economic transition” in Tunisia. The EIB “is, and wants to continue to be, the first financial institution for development projects and investment projects in Tunisia”. It signed a €230 million financing agreement at the conference to be used for a concession for gas production in the south of Tunisia by Austrian company OMV, and for the transport of gas by pipeline from here to the port of Gabès 370km away. The EIB will thus have entered into financing contracts for new projects “which will enable us to top the €1 billion financing mark since the revolution and to be ranked at an annual financing threshold of €500 million”, said de Fontaine Vive.
The EU reiterated its offer of micro-financial assistance in the form of a medium-term loan of €300 million to be disbursed in three tranches - the first of which would be between 2014 and 2015. (This offer dates back to December and was approved by the Council and European Parliament in May 2014.) In Barnier's statements - as reported by local Tunisian media - he said that the main challenges and keys to success for cooperation are youth training, political freedom, and the adoption of laws needed to facilitate employment and the development of industrial ambition. According to the same sources, Barnier tried to reassure the conference participants - particularly the trade unions, which are concerned about the opening of trade advocated by the EU for Tunisia - by saying that Europe itself was going through the same experience with the USA. “What I know is that the next EU commissioner for the economy will work to make a win-win situation in trade come about… but I can understand the unions' concern. We have the same concerns on the subject of tariff opening. I can assure you that the EU will ensure that a win-win situation is guaranteed”, he said.
The Maghrebi dimension. On behalf of the EU, Barnier highlighted the Maghrebi dimension of the event, calling the Maghrebi countries - like Europe - to take note of this future evolution. “Let's turn to the future”, he said. He stressed,“without giving any lessons - as has sometimes been the tendency for Europe in the past - but simply by sharing experience, the importance of constituting a common market bringing together the community of Maghreb countries for the prosperity and stability of your region. Your presence here, Prime Minister of Morocco [Abdelilah Benikrane] and Prime Minister of Algeria [Abdemalek Sellal], at the invitation of your Tunisian counterpart, leads me to think that regional integration efforts need to be strengthened. As the history of the EU clearly shows, still more than the desire to be together, the development of common institutions and projects depends on the ability to create the need for, and interest in, acting together. We are ready to help you in this as we have over 60 years of experience in European construction with the common market. The future here too can be found in the creation of a common Mediterranean market between you - with rules, common policies and the pooling of your economies. This is a project for the future!” (Our translation throughout.) (FB)