Posted on Friday, 16 February 2018 12:00By REUTERSFormer World Bank official and economics professor Marouane el Abassi was confirmed by Tunisia's parliament as the new central bank governor on Thursday, promising "extraordinary measures" to lift the country's economy. Abassi takes over at a time when Tunisia faces deep economic challenges including rising deficits and inflation, a fall in the value of the Tunisian dinar and persistently high unemployment. "But the current period is an extraordinary period that needs to be dealt with through extraordinary measures. He replaces Chedli Ayari who had led the central bank since 2012 and resigned on Wednesday, reluctantly acceding to a request from Prime Minister Youssef Chahed. Austerity measures including tax and price hikes that took effect on Jan. 1 triggered protests, some violent, in towns and cities across Tunisia.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 15, 2018 21:22 UTC