The European Union is ready to mobilise up to €900 million to support Tunisia's economy, plus an immediate additional €150m in budget support once "necessary agreement is found", EU commission head Ursula von der Leyen has said.
Ms von der Leyen is in the north African country along with the Italian and Dutch leaders for talks on helping its troubled economy and on reducing the flow of irregular migrants to Europe.
The EU was also ready to provide Tunisia with €100m for border management, search and rescue, anti-smuggling measures and returns to address the migration issue, Ms von der Leyen said.
The north African country, now in discussions for an IMF bailout loan, is a major gateway for migrants and asylum-seekers attempting the dangerous Mediterranean sea crossings.
EU governments, under pressure to reduce arrivals, last week agreed on steps to fast-track migrant returns to their countries of origin or transit countries deemed "safe", including Tunisia.
Ms von der Leyen, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte are in Tunisia to meet President Kais Saied, who has assumed near total governing powers over the country since 2021, for talks on economic and migration concerns.
Ms Meloni is on her second Tunisia visit within a week, after meeting Mr Saied on Tuesday.
Tunisia lies about 150 kilometres from the Italian island of Lampedusa, and has long been a stepping stone for migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan African countries, seeking a better life in Europe.
An increasing number of the migrants hail from Tunisia, whose tourism-based economy was hit hard by the Covid pandemic and which is now in a serious economic crisis marked by high inflation and unemployment.
The highly indebted country reached an in-principle deal last year for an IMF bailout loan of around $2 billion.
However talks have since stalled over the reforms demanded by the fund, especially on state-run enterprises and state subsidies on basic products.
Mr Saied, who has seized almost total power since a dramatic July 2021 move against parliament, on Tuesday again slammed what he has termed the "diktats" of the Washington-based IMF.
On the migration issue, Mr Saied has in the past vowed "urgent measures" to tackle arrivals in Tunisia.
Tunisian rights groups accused him of hate speech after he charged in February that "hordes" of sub-Saharan African migrants were responsible for rising crime and posed a "demographic" threat.
Attacks on migrants rose sharply after his speech, and thousands fled the country.
Yesterday Mr Saied said he rejected turning Tunisia into Europe's "border guard", speaking during a surprise visit to Sfax, a coastal city from where many migrants leave.
The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights denounced the visit by the three European leaders as an attempt to "blackmail" Tunisia with an offer of financial support in return for stepped up border vigilance.
