Tunis: European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Paolo Gentiloni on Friday reiterated the EU’s commitment to boosting cooperation with Tunisia in various sectors and to supporting its priority reform and development programmes, the Ministry of Economy and Planning said on Saturday.
The European official was speaking at a meeting held with Economy and Planning Minister Feriel Ouerghi on the sidelines of the 2024 Spring Meetings held April 15-20 in Washington.
Ways to step up the financial and logistical partnership between the EU and Tunisia over the next period in light of geopolitical developments and the climate change impact on socio-economic development were discussed during the meeting.
The minister also held talks with Director – Lending Operations in EU Neighbouring Countries at European Investment Bank (EIB) Lionel Rappaille, with whom she reviewed the projects financed by the EIB over the next period.
The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss the Tunisian Investment Forum, whi
ch is due to be organised in mid-June 2024 with the support of the EU.
The two officials pointed out in this regard, the importance of the role that the EIB can play in the success of this forum.
Feriel Ouerghi, together with the official delegation, also met with Vice-President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Naoki Ando.
They underlined commitment to scaling up financial and logistical cooperation, and diversifying it to include sectors that are promising and a priority for Tunisia, such as water, research and technological innovation.
On the sidelines of the spring meetings, the Tunisian delegation took part in a workshop on “Addressing the investment gap to foster water security and climate resilience.”
During the workshop, the minister underscored that Tunisia, like many countries around the world, is suffering from water stress as a result of global warming, which poses a real threat to agriculture, services, tourism and food security.
She called in this connection, to consolid
ate cooperation on an international scale in order to find solutions to water stress and its economic, social and environmental effects.
Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse