Over 93% of entrepreneurs, artisans and people exercising liberal professions said they have not received any financial support from the government, reveled a survey by the National Organization of Entrepreneurs (French: ONE) presented at a press conference Monday in Tunis.
The survey focused on the impact of the second wave of COVID-19 and included a sample of 3,281 entrepreneurs.
83% of respondents said that they had not benefitted from the measures announced by the government for companies hit by the health crisis.
The survey, carried out between December 15, 2020 and February 3, 2021, highlighted that 89.7% of those polled said they had not received any support from their banks during the crisis.
It also revealed that 32% of respondents are considering changing the nature of their businesses, noting that 60.3% of entrepreneurs, artisans and those exercising liberal professions remain “pessimistic” about the future of the national economy for the next three years to come.
Nearly 92% of those polled unanimously stressed the importance of digitalizing the Tunisian administration. Describing the outcomes of the survey, Chairman of the ONE Yassine Gouia said they are “alarming”.
The Tunisian economy has not faced such a crisis since the independence, he added.
He added that the survey clearly showed entrepreneurs’ dissatisfaction with the government policy in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19.
Gouia called on banks to provide support to artisans, small entrepreneurs and people exercising liberal professions who have been heavily impacted by the coronavirus.
