Hungary has concluded an agreement with Tunisia on mutually recognising Covid-19 immunity certificates, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, has said. Under the agreement, Hungarians who have been inoculated against Covid with any type of vaccine can enter Tunisia from Dec. 16 upon presenting a negative PCR test, the minister said in Tunis. Hungary has now reached agreements on mutual recognition of Covid immunity certificates with 26 countries, Szijjártó said.
The foreign minister held talks with Tunisian counterpart Othman Jerandi, and they signed agreements on cooperation in health care, welfare, diplomatic education and culture. They also signed a cooperation agreement between Hungary’s Eximbank and Tunisia’s National Agricultural Bank (BNA). At a joint press conference after the meeting, Szijjártó said Hungary will provide 150,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines and 10 ventilators to Tunisia to aid its coronavirus protection efforts. The contribution can also help maintain stability, he said, adding that Europe’s security was “depends to a great extent” on developments in the African continent. Increasing the rate of full vaccination and easing pressure posed by migrants coming from the African continent is key to Europe’s security, he said. “Tunisia and north Africa generally can play a key role in this endeavour which is why the Hungarian government is providing medical and defence support to the country,” Szijjártó said, noting Hungarian training programmes for Tunisian law enforcement and police forces.
On the topic of economic ties, Szijjártó noted a 38% increase in this year’s volume of trade. He also noted education cooperation in framework of which Hungary provides university grants to 200 Tunisian students each year. Szijjártó said Tunisia is a highly popular travel destination, with some 15,000 Hungarian visiting the country in 2019.
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