This study investigates the influences of financial performance and economic determinants (inflation rate and economic growth) on financial distress (FD) in the MENA region in the context of the contagion effect theory and Minsky's financial instability theory. This paper examines the...

This paper empirically examines the multiple impacts of alternative, major fiscal instruments on decarbonization in countries in the Middle East and North Africa. It also examines the effects of decarbonization pathways on decarbonization, using a database covering 41 countries, including...

The Middle East and North Africa faces significant climate challenges, such as increasing temperatures, heightened flood risks, frequent droughts, and growing air pollution issues. These challenges are compounded by the large proportion of the population living below the poverty line in some...

Migration is deeply ingrained in the lives and livelihoods of people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The region witnesses three key migration patterns: labour migration, mixed migration, and displacement. Migration in the region in 2021-2022 was influenced by the pull of...

This paper examines the effect of information and communication technology (ICT) usage on economic growth in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with a focus on how education levels modulate this relationship. Covering data from 2000 to 2020 and employing a panel ARDL model for...

This paper uses data from the 24 governorates in Tunisia over the period 2012-2020 to study the relationship between job insertion of higher education graduates into the formal labor market and a number of independent variables, namely active labor supply, labor demand, an active labor market...

This paper examines two key questions about decarbonization and its economic implications. First, it analyzes how environmental provisions in trade agreements affect bilateral trade flows, with a specific focus on the Middle East and North Africa region. By constructing a detailed dataset of...

The Middle East and North Africa is the most water scarce region in the world. Although studies have explored the effect of extreme weather events on agriculture, much less is known about the effect on businesses. Using geocoded firm-level data from the World Bank's Enterprise Surveys across the...

Turkey's popularity in the MENA region has increased since the AKP’s rise to power in 2002. People-to-people contacts, economic progress, and a perceived European lifestyle have contributed to Turkey’s popularity in the MENA region. Turkey’s seemingly competitive political system and...

The empirical literature on the association of cash flow volatility and debt maturity structure is limited and inconclusive. This article investigates the impact of cash flow volatility on debt maturity structure, and the interaction effect of cash flow volatility and fixed assets on debt...

For decades, Maghrebi decision-makers have instrumentalised friend and foe narratives with regard to Israel and Iran, two of the most controversial regional actors in the MENA region. Only Morocco has official relations with Israel, only Algeria and Tunisia with Iran. A systematic analysis of...

The paper presents a cross-country analysis of seven countries in the MENA region and explores the effects of COVID-19 on educational policymaking. The paper uses a quasi-thematic literature review to highlight the emerging themes related to the quality of education during the pandemic. The...

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop a new multidimensional financial inclusion index to measure the financial inclusion level for each of the 13 selected countries of the Middle East and North Africa region for the period 2004-2020. In addition, the comparative analysis approach...

This paper assesses the state and resilience of corporate and banking sectors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in a "higher-for-longer" interest rate environment using granular micro data to conduct the first cross-country corporate and banking sector stress tests for the MENA region....

The paper aims to empirically assess the threshold effect in the large shareholders (LS) and bank performance relationship. We used a sample of MENA banks during the period 2004-2017. To get benefit from a comparative regional analysis, the whole sample was divided into two sub-samples, banks in...

The digital divide within the financial sector, closely intertwined with the rapid evolution of financial technologies, commonly known as "FinTech," has fundamentally reshaped the landscape of financial services. These innovations have ushered in novel avenues for accessibility, enhancing the...

This study examines the linear and nonlinear impacts of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) components on bank stock returns in the region of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). It also investigates the impact of bank size on the nexus between ESG and bank stock returns. Using a...

Several studies on economic transition propose that structural change in developing countries, that involves reallocating from less productive to more productive sectors, might enhance participation in global value chains (GVCs). However, there is a lack of empirical work on this claim. This...

This study examined the relationship between the board characteristics and stock performance of commercial banks. Our analysis is based on a sample of 65 banks across 10 MENA countries and their quantitative data extracted between 2013 and 2022. This research employed pooled OLS, and fixed and...

Purpose: The relationship between financial inclusion and economic growth is an intriguing topic that is generating extensive attention among researchers and merits comprehensive investigation. This paper aims to empirically explore this relationship using panel data for 13 Middle Eastern and...

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) gas exporters are facing long-term market and regulatory challenges in Europe. The near three-year continuous decline in Europe’s gas demand since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis is a key challenge for these exporters who are concerned about whether this...

This study explores the impact of International Monetary Fund (IMF)-linked conditionality on government education expenditures in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Understanding the impact of conditional lending by international financial institutions on education spending is...

NATO’s 2023 summit in Vilnius was dominated by Russia’s war against Ukraine. The summit in Washington, D.C., in July 2024 will be influenced by an additional major conflict in NATO’s neighbourhood: the war in Gaza and the related heightened tensions in the Middle East. These have also...

The conflict in Gaza and Israel is yet another shock to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating an already challenging environment for neighboring economies and beyond. This Update covers economies in the MENA region and does not...