A new government has been announced by the prime minister-designate of Tunisia, Hichem Mechichi. The announcement came on Tuesday, about a month after Mechichi’s appointment. However, Mechichi has to gain the approval of lawmakers to cement his new appointees or Tunisia could face possible early elections.
Issues to Consider:
- Mechichi said he had decided to form a new cabinet composed of “independent expertise”, with only a few outgoing ministers included in the line-up.
- Mr. Mechichi bypassed consultations with political factions and opposition leaders. This has particularly angered the Islamist Party Ennahdha who have the potential to make his “technocratic” government null by passing a no confidence vote.
- While the Ennahdha is displeased with Mechichi’s stand-alone decision, prospects for an early election are quite bleak as all parties have agreed that early elections could be disruptive.
- As part of his plans to revamp the government and revive the economy, the Prrime Minsiter-Designate has merged the ministries of finance, investment and economy into a single department led by Ali Kooli, a liberal economist and CEO of Arab Banking Corporation (ABC Bank) in Tunisia.
- Rolling protests have continued in Tunisia over unemployment, poor healthcare, electricity and water services.
How Governance Works in Tunisia
The president, who is also the head of state, is constitutionally limited to foreign affairs and defence. The prime minister (head of government) who is nominated by the president is responsible for forming members of government, seeing to the day-to-day running of government and driving economic policy, an issue which is very pressing currently for Tunisia whose GDP has declined significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mechichi is the third Prime Minister to be appointed by the Kais Saied presidency since the polls last October and this is the second government being formed in six months. Lawmakers will vote on Mechichi’s line-up in the next 10 days.
