Italian PM Meloni in Tunisia for more talks to curb migration to Europe

Tunisian President Kais Saied with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the Carthage presidential palace in Tunis, last June. EPA

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni arrived in Tunis on Wednesday for a state visit, with hopes to sign further co-operation agreements to curb unregulated migration, Italian news agency Agenzia Nova reported.

Ms Meloni’s visit to Tunisia is the fourth in less than a year and the first following the announcement of the Mattei plan, in which she promised a €5.5 billion ($5.95 billion) investment package for projects in Africa at a summit in Rome in January.

A critical part of the plan – and a wider EU package – is helping Tunisia control an influx of migrants moving through the country, many from sub-Saharan Africa, attempting to cross the Mediterranean. Thousands die each year attempting to make the journey, often aided by unscrupulous people smugglers, who provide unsafe boats at extortionate cost.

The UN Migration Agency IOM estimates that at least 2,271 people died trying to cross to Europe through the Mediterranean route last year alone.

Increasingly, many also come from Tunisia and across North Africa, seeking better economic opportunities in Europe.

The Italian PM will be joined by a delegation that will include Minister of Interior, Matteo Piantedosi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edmondo Cirielli, and Minister of Higher Education, Anna Maria Bernini.

In her previous visits, Ms Meloni promised rigorous support for Tunisia in the form of investment and financial packages to help alleviate the country’s continuing financial crisis.

She reiterated on multiple occasions her government’s stance regarding the need to stabilise the economic situation in Tunisia in order to prevent more migrants crossing the Mediterranean and attempting to reach its shores.

Tunisian president Kais Saied also repeatedly expressed his rejection for his country to become a transit destination for irregular sub-Saharan migrants attempting to reach Europe.

“Tunisia, which has always treated migrants humanely, refuses to be a transit or settlement [area] for them,” he said during a meeting with high-ranking officials from the National Security Council on Saturday.

Mr Saied also accused international organisations of failing to implement promised migration policies and leaving Tunisia to single-handedly deal with the crisis and bear its consequences.

Italian Interior Ministry data shows that more than 153,000 migrants reached Italy last year, compared to 105,140 in 2022 and 67,477 in 2021.