TUNIS, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Tunisia will implement a new subsidy system next year to reduce subsidies for basic materials gradually, Minister of Trade and Export Development Fadhila Rabhi said on Tuesday.
The spending on subsidies in Tunisia is expected to reach 4.2 billion Tunisian dinars (around 1.39 billion U.S. dollars) in 2022, compared to 3.2 billion dinars in 2021 and 730 million dinars in 2010, Rabhi said at a press conference.
The new system will implement from 2023 to 2026, and the subsidy will be directed to people and families on low incomes, she added.
Rabhi stressed that this reform aims to set up a fair support system and rationalize the consumption of subsidized materials.
Tunisia is seeking a 4-billion-U.S. dollar loan from the IMF to avoid bankruptcy. To this end, the North African country is required to implement deep reforms including freezing wages, cutting energy and food subsidies and privatizing some state companies. ■