Tunisia - Social Development Promotion Support Project : Second Additional Financing

Overview & Synopsis

The development objective of Social Development Promotion Support Project (formerly the COVID-19 Social Protection Emergency Response Support Project) for Tunisia is to provide cash support to poor and vulnerable households and strengthen the country's social protection system. This paper seeks World Bank Board approval for a second Additional Financing (AF2) of EUR 75.4 million (US$90 million equivalent) to scale up the Parent Project (PP), which was approved on March 31, 2021 and became effective on June 29, 2021. The AF2 now entails expanding Parent Project activities, extending the closing date from March 31, 2026 to March 31, 2030, amending the Performance Based Conditions, revisiting the Results Framework, and updating the implementation schedule and disbursement projections. The Project Development Objective will remain unchanged, ensuring smooth continuity across project phases by completing COVID related interventions while continuing support for the AMEN Social program. The AF2 will scale up activities focused on PwDs and children from poor and low income households by expanding Family Allowances to children aged 6 to 18, establishing a national disability fund, streamlining access to AMEN disability related allowances and services, and strengthening Early Intervention initiatives to facilitate transition out of social assistance, while also laying the foundation for an inclusive social security scheme for non poor workers. Additionally, the AF2 will strengthen adaptive social protection capacities for rapid disaster response, building on Tunisia's experience during the COVID 19 pandemic when the AMEN social registry enabled emergency assistance to nearly one million households, thereby improving resilience to droughts, floods, and other climate related shocks, particularly in rural areas.