2018-10-20
 
A Tunisian government source said on Saturday the country plans to sell international bonds valued at one billion dollars this week.
 
Tunisia plans to sell bonds since the first quarter of the year to help reduce the budget deficit, but the move has been postponed more than once.
 
Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Natixis are among those selected to manage the offering, the source said.
 
The International Monetary Fund last month approved a $ 245 million loan payment, the fifth in a lending program for Tunisia, paving the way for the bond issue.
 
The IMF has linked the lending program to economic reforms aimed at keeping the budget deficit under control.
 
Tunisia was singled out as the only democratic success among countries that witnessed the "Arab Spring" uprisings in 2011. But successive governments failed to make the necessary changes to reduce the budget deficit and accelerate growth.