Announcement of Tunisia to Increase Food Production with Fifteen Million Dollars World Bank Loan on March 18, 1985

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE INTERNATIONAL MONETARy FUND World Bank I;INTRI 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A. ATIONAL BAK FOR NcTRN TION AND DEVELOPMENT BANK NEWS RELEASE NO. 85/35 WA Contact: Fawzi Rihane March 18, 1985 (202) 477-5325 TUNISIA TO INCREASE FOOD PRODUCTION WITH $15 MILLION WORLD BANK LOAN Some 4,500 farmers and 24 production cooperatives in northwest Tunisia will benefit from a project to raise food production and farm incomes. The World Bank will support the project with a loan of $15 million. The project will focus on the improvement of rainfed agriculture on 400,000 hectares*in a region of high agricultural potential in the provinces of Jendouba, El Kef, Beja and Siliana. Farmers and cooperatives in the area are already established in the market economy and the assistance should enable them to quickly increase production of cereal and livestock products. Technologies suited to the project area have been tested since 1969 at an experimental farm operated with the assistance of the Belgian aid program. By adopting more appropriate crop rotations and improving fertilizer and weed control strategies, the project will increase performance of the agricultural sector by some 106,600 tons at full development. An efficient extension service, to be managed as a Training and Visit system, will be introduced to the area. It will include construction and provision of equipment, vehicles, and additional staff for 18 new and 15 existing extension centers and the establishment of a farm management center. One animal production and two field crop research stations will be rehabilitated. Three animal health centers, ten artificial insemination posts for dairy cattle, and one milk collection center will be constructed. To ease transportation difficulties in the region, 110 kilometers of rural roads will be upgraded. Credit will be extended for farm development, including the improvement of dairies and sheepfolds, and for 15 new resale centers to supply fertilizer, seeds of recommended varieties, and pesticides. The project will be carried out over a period of four years at a cost of $37.9 million. Besides the World Bank loan, financing will be provided by the Government of Tunisia, $12.5 million, the National Bank of Tunisia, $7 million, local farmers, $3.2 million, and Belgium, $0.2 million. The World Bank loan is for 17 years, including four years of grace, with a variable interest rate, currently 9.29 percent, linked to the cost of the Bank's borrowings. It also carries an annual commitment charge of 0.75 percent on undisbursed balances. NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents.