In a letter addressed to his teams, the President of the World Bank David Malpass explains that the institution was not able to continue its missions on the spot ” considering the situation “, while ” the safety and inclusion of migrants and minorities are part of the core values of inclusion, respect and anti-racism of the WB. Concretely, the institution can no longer launch a new support program with the country until its board of directors has met, and it has decided to postpone this meeting on Tunisia until later. until further notice ».
« Funded projects remain funded and ongoing projects remain ongoing “, told AFP a source close to the World Bank. 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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If the measures taken by the Tunisian government ” in order to protect and support migrants and refugees in this very difficult situation » go in « common sense “, the World Bank ensures that it “ 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 ” regarding President Saïed’s comments ”, which on February 21 castigated in a speech THE “ hordes of illegal immigrants “whose arrival came under 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. .