(TAP) – Tunisia is seeking to host 8 million tourists in 2018 thanks to security efforts, Prime Minster Youssef Chahed said on Saturday.

However, this must not conceal the issues facing this sector, notably indebtedness, he indicated.

Chairing in Tozeur a working session gathering about 300 professional and stakeholders in the tourism field and devoted to reviewing the sector’s structural and marketing problems, he pointed out that “solutions have been found for the indebtedness issue of hotel facilities through debt rescheduling and granting financial aid to hotels incapable of paying their debt.”

“Tunisia has met all the necessary conditions for open skies with the European Union which agreement is set to be inked before June,” he noted.

Minister of Tourism and Handicraft Selma Elloumi Rekik told reporters “the White Paper on debts of hotel facilities will be updated so as to review its direct impact.”

Chahed is currently paying a two-day visit in Tozeur (February 16-17) along with a ministerial delegation.

A set of measures aiming to boost the pace of development in the region in several fields (energy, handicraft…) were announced during this visit.