Party head vows to increase economic growth if he wins Tunisian election

The leader of Tunisia’s Congress for the Republic Party has vowed that he will increase economic growth by 6.5 per cent over the next 5 years if he wins next month’s legislative election. Tareq Kahlaoui also vowed to reduce the unemployment rate from the present 15 per cent to 10 per cent by 2019.

The International Fund’s forecast in Tunis predicted that the National GDP in Tunisia would grow by 4 percent in 2015, compared to 2.8 per cent so far this year and 2.3 per cent in 2013.

Tunisia is preparing for the legislative election on 26 October followed by a presidential election on 23 November in the hope of solidifying the country’s emerging democracy. The current interim president, Moncef Marzouki, has been nominated to run for the presidential election independent from his party, which is also Congress for the Republic.

Kahlaoui confirmed that his party’s policies are in line with the goals of the Tunisian revolution and that they are aimed to make concrete changes in both the presidential administration and the judiciary. “We are well aware of the fact that the lack of participation from our partners in the troika is the main reason why we have been unable to implement any legislation in line with the January 14th Revolution’s goal,” he told the media.

Following the constituent assembly elections in 2011, the Congress for the Republic formed a coalition with Ennahda Party and the Democratic Forum for Labour and Liberties, the first such alliance in Tunisia’s history. The troika government ended after protests erupted in the country following the assassination of opposition politician Mohamed Brahman in July last year. The leader of the Bilad Party, Mehdi Jumaa, was appointed as prime minister until the forthcoming elections.

Speaking to Turkey’s Anatolia News Agency about Tunisia’s security situation, Kahlaoui said that the party has developed a comprehensive strategy for dealing with terrorism. “This includes providing security forces with sophisticated weapons and logistical support to restore political security in the country,” he claimed. “Fighting terrorism is about much more than national security and that is why our government is working on creating and implementing a cultural programme that aims to educate the youth and prevent them from going to the ranks of the extremists.”

According to Interior Minister Lutfi Ben Jeddo, approximately 3,000 Tunisians are involved in extremist activity. For this reason, nearly 8,000 citizens have been banned from travelling to Syria and Iraq.

The head of the opposition Congress Party, Anis Jaziri, said recently that his economic programme for the next five years is based on 40 development projects that are expected to cost $40 billion, to be funded by the state and the private sector. They will focus on supporting infrastructure, such as roads and railways, he said, built around the establishment of free trade zones between Tunisia, Libya and Algeria. Jaziri explained that the government will work on developing the technology field in Tunisia, which is expected to create 50,000 jobs by 2019.

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