29th Report of the High Committee of Administrative and Financial Control (HCCAF) Reveals Suspect Foreign Funding of Tunisian Associations
The 29th report of the High Committee of Administrative and Financial Control (HCCAF) for 2023 was made public on Wednesday, February 5. The report details the activities of certain public and assimilated organizations to evaluate their performance and formulate recommendations accordingly. Among the files treated by the high committee is the foreign funding received by associations in Tunisia in 2023.
In fact, the report mentions that 13,000 associations were created between 2011 and 2020, with 2,868 established between 2011 and 2012. Tunisia had 23,320 associations in 2020, which increased to 24,797 in 2023.
Suspect Associations and Excessive Foreign Funding
The report deemed four associations suspicious, which claimed to have charitable activities and received excessive funding from foreign sources, totaling 23.9 million dinars. Between 2012 and 2019, other suspect funding from Qatar, Kuwait, and Turkey amounted to 27.7 million dinars. Additionally, some associations received donations from embassies in Tunisia without going through the official intermediary, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Decree-law No. 88 of 2011 governs the funding of associations from states, institutions, organizations, and regional and international bodies.
Forms of Foreign Funding and Non-Compliance
The funding is received by associations in various forms, such as financial aid, framed by a cooperation or financing agreement for programs or projects. The HCCAF highlights that out of 1005 associations, 566 clearly failed to correct irregularities related to receiving foreign funds between 2014 and 2019. This is a manifest obstinacy to not comply with the law, despite multiple notifications sent by the government's general secretariat on the matter, criticizes the report.
Lack of Up-to-Date Data on Foreign Financial Transactions
The report also denounced a flagrant lack of up-to-date data on foreign financial transactions destined for associations. This lack has unfortunately hindered rigorous, complete, and meticulous surveillance of these financial transactions, allowing at least 31.8 million dinars from foreign sources to escape control.
