Financing Challenges in the Tunisian Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
The issue of financing remains a pressing concern in the Tunisian entrepreneurial ecosystem. This challenge is part of a broader observation made by the World Bank, which notes that in emerging economies, four out of ten companies still face difficulties in accessing credit. It was in this context that the latest Financing Meetings were held, bringing together economic decision-makers and representatives of international financial institutions. Organized by the Tunisian-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the event allowed for the examination of sixty-one financing requests and the organization of forty-five direct interviews between project leaders and financiers.
The President of the Chamber, Khelil Chaibi, emphasized the need to rethink financing tools in depth to align them with the complex realities faced by local SMEs, which are torn between technological transformations, environmental requirements, and economic instability.
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Support
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), present in Tunisia since 2012, has mobilized more than 2.7 billion euros, including 240 million euros in 2024 alone. Its representative, Firas Moalla, detailed an approach combining several instruments. Companies can thus benefit from advisory support, 70% of which is covered by the EBRD, covering areas such as production chain optimization or energy audit implementation.
Beyond ten million euros, the bank intervenes directly in the form of loans. Below this amount, it proposes a partial guarantee mechanism backed by the contracts of partner banks, simplifying procedures while opening up access to technical assistance. Three concrete examples illustrate this strategy: a conditioner that reduced its electricity consumption by 15%, a food transformer equipped with solutions allowing it to save 90% of its water resource, and an industrial unit equipped with a 5-megawatt solar power plant. The EBRD also intervenes through direct equity participation and supports several local investment funds. A few days before the forum, two credit lines were signed with Tunisian banks to facilitate access to green financing for their customers.
African Development Bank (AfDB) Initiatives
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has a portfolio dedicated to the private sector in North Africa, amounting to more than 600 million euros, extracted from a global continental envelope of 5 billion euros. Fernando Rodrigues, responsible for operations in North Africa, explained that this envelope is mainly structured around long-term loans, complemented by credit lines, equity injections, and partial guarantees. The AfDB targets financially autonomous companies with structured governance, for operations starting at 10 million euros, and can typically cover a third of the total amount. Repayment periods extend up to fifteen years, or even twenty years for infrastructure or energy projects. The Kairouan solar project, co-financed with the SFI to the tune of 37 million euros, embodies this approach. At the regional level, the Bank has also supported a rubber transformer in Côte d'Ivoire and participated in the financing of a 50-million-euro cement plant in Morocco.
International Finance Corporation (IFC) Strategies
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) generally requires a minimum ticket of ten million dollars or euros, a threshold justified by its resident representative, Sarah Morsi, due to the magnitude of the costs of processing files. Recently, the institution has released 68 million euros for a Tunisian cherry tomato producer employing 3,000 people in the Gabès region and has structured the financing of the 100-megawatt Tozeur One solar power plant. For SMEs that do not meet this size criterion, the IFC has developed an indirect access strategy via commercial banks, leasing companies, and private equity funds, such as a recent investment in the Flat6Labs fund in Tunisia.
The institution also proposes direct minority participations, capped at 20% of the capital, and an advisory component covering governance, energy efficiency, and decarbonization strategies. Its priority areas of intervention include the pharmaceutical industry, aiming for the African goal of 60% self-sufficiency in medicines by 2030-2035, renewable energies, agri-food, and water management. The IFC is currently working with ONAS and SONEDE on programs aimed at strengthening their financial viability and structuring public-private partnerships.
