The draft state budget for the 2026 financial year reveals that Tunisia plans to once again resort to direct financing from the Central Bank in order to cover part of its financial needs, estimated at around 27 billion dinars for the coming year, an amount similar to that of 2025.
According to article 12 of the bill, the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) would be authorized to grant liquidity facilities to the State up to 11 billion dinars. These funds would be granted without interest, repayable over 15 years, including 3 years of grace, and intended to support the general treasury of the country.
This measure, exceptional in Tunisian monetary policy, comes in a context of strong budgetary constraints and difficulties in accessing external financing.
Sukuk issues
At the same time, article 11 of the draft budget provides for the possibility for the Minister of Finance to issue or guarantee up to 7 billion dinars in sukuk (Islamic bonds), in accordance with the legislation in force.
These financial instruments aim to diversify sources of financing and attract new investors, particularly funds from Islamic markets.
Growing recourse to monetary support
It was in February 2024 that the Assembly of People’s Representatives adopted a law authorizing the direct financing of the state budget by the BCT to the tune of 7 billion dinars. This measure was described as “exceptional”, to deal with cash flow emergencies and repay an external loan.
During the year 2024, the Treasury drew on this envelope, and at the end of 2024 the outstanding direct facilities and advances from the BCT amounted to approximately 6.7 billion dinars out of an authorized total of 7 billion authorized)
For 2025, a new similar envelope of 7 billion dinars was included in the finance law, thus extending this exceptional mechanism.
According to data published as of August 2025, the total outstanding amount of direct BCT facilities granted to the State would have exceeded 11.65 billion dinars, which confirms the intensification of the use of monetary financing to fill the budget deficit.
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