Anti-migrant violence: the World Bank suspends its partnership framework with Tunisia
World Bank headquarters in Washington.
© AP/Andrew Harnik
Text by: RFI Follow
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The World Bank (WB) will suspend "
until further notice
" its partnership framework with Tunisia, which serves as a basis for monitoring by the institution's board of directors in order to assess and support the country in its programs. help.
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In a letter addressed to his teams, the President of the World Bank David Malpass explains that the institution was unable to continue its missions on the spot "
given the situation
", while "
security and inclusion migrants and minorities are part of the
WB's central values of inclusion, respect and anti-racism.
Concretely, the institution can no longer launch a new support program with the country as long as its board of directors has not met, and it has decided to postpone this meeting on Tunisia "until
further order
”.
“
Funded projects remain funded and ongoing projects remain ongoing
,” a source close to the World Bank told AFP.
However, the institution warns of a possible slowdown in its actions on site due to the implementation of security measures, in particular for its staff from sub-Saharan Africa and their families.
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To read also: Tunisia: violence against sub-Saharan migrants after the words of President Saïed
If the measures taken by the Tunisian government "
to protect and support migrants and refugees in this very difficult situation
" go in "
good sense
", the World Bank assures that it "
will carefully assess and monitor their impact
".
During a press briefing on Monday, the spokesperson for the US State Department, Ned Price, for his part expressed the "deep concerns" of the United States "about President Saïed's comments
"
, who on February 21
had castigated in a speech
the "
hordes of illegal migrants
" whose arrival was part of a "
criminal enterprise hatched at the dawn of this century to change the demographic composition of Tunisia
".
Ned Price called on the Tunisian government to "
respect its obligations under international law by protecting the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants
".
According to official figures quoted by the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES), Tunisia, which has some 12 million inhabitants, is home to more than 21,000 nationals from sub-Saharan African countries, most of them in an irregular situation. .
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