The potential employment impacts of green and renewable energy in the Middle East and North Africa are multifaceted and promising. As this column explains, embracing renewable energy technologies presents an opportunity for the region to diversify its economy, mitigate the possible negative impacts of digitalization on existing jobs, reduce its carbon footprint and create significant levels of employment across a variety of sectors.
The green energy transition: employment pathways for MENA
Economic Research Forum
How can countries in the Middle East and North Africa capitalise on the transition to renewable energy to foster a sustainable, productive and inclusive economy? This column, which draws on the development strategy advice of Oxford economist Paul Collier, calls for a nexus approach to skill development, finance, research and education
MENAs transition to renewable energy: a new development strategy
Economic Research Forum
Polling data from the Arab Barometer in 2021 reveals that a large majority of citizens—ranging from 89 percent in Tunisia and Lebanon to 61 percent in Morocco—believe that corruption is prevalent in state agencies to a large or medium extent. Fewer believe that governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are effectively combating it, and these numbers are steadily declining in many countries.
Reading of the Week: How Effective Are Arab Anticorruption Agencies? Is the Glass Half Empty or Half Full?
Middle East Council on Global Affairs
The MENA region’s increasing access to digital information and internet usage has led to an explosion in e-commerce and widespread interest in cryptocurrencies. At the same time, cybercrime, which includes hacking, malware, online fraud and harassment, has spread across digital networks.
The threat of cybercrime in MENA economies
Economic Research Forum
The Middle East and North Africa will become one of the world’s foremost renewable energy producing regions and a hub for international renewable energy supply chains within the next 25 years. Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan are spearheading the trend in the region through the development of their respective green energy ecosystems
MENAs Emergence as a Hub for Renewable Energy Supply Chains
Middle East Institute
Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has not only resurrected the specters of the Korean War in the 1950s and the Cuban Missile Crisis in the 1960s but has also driven a large wedge between Russia and Western nations, creating a rift deeper than any witnessed in recent history. Concurrently, Russia has been forging increasingly strong ties with other nations, including those in the Middle East.
Russias Great Energy Game in the Middle East
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Pressure is growing on companies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to accelerate their progress on sustainability. To achieve this will require regional guidelines, materiality assessments and political leadership. While the region faces considerable climate-related challenges, it is endowed with abundant access to solar and wind energy, a ready supply of capital and a long-term focus among many of its governments.
Reading of the Week: Prioritizing Sustainability in MENA. Mapping critical environmental issues for regional businesses
World Economic Forum and Bain & Company
Using panel data from a large group of developing economies and a Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimator, we examine the effects of trade and other factors on female labor-force participation and wage employment. We focus particularly on comparing the effects of trade openness in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).
Trade And Women In The Labor Market: How Different Is MENA From Other Regions?
Policy Center for the New South
In the post-Cold War era, the Middle East and Africa were defined largely by their geopolitical significance. The West, especially the United States and Europe, engaged with these regions through a lens focused on security, energy supply, and strategic alliances. However, this dynamic has shifted significantly over the last two decades.
Africa and the Middle East: The Shift from Geopolitics to Geoeconomics
Policy Center for the New South
We are witnessing a moment of transition in international governance. Everyone unanimously concludes that we are facing a multipolar world. This process of reconfiguration of international architecture leads us to consider the future of the Euro-Mediterranean area today.
A New Centrality for the Euro-Mediterranean Space
European Institute of the Mediterranean
Small and medium-sized enterprises represent around 80-90% of private sector businesses in the MENA region, and they employ over 50% of the formal workforce in some countries. Of that, new digital startups are only a small part. Despite SMEs’ limited share in national output in MENA compared to other regions, digital transformation is a crucial opportunity for these businesses to benefit from the growing digital economy and provide a remedy to severe youth unemployment and slow economic growth.
As the source of the most employment, this sector should be targeted for greater integration of information and communication technologies (ICT), but businesses often lack the means of both financial support and know-how to increase their use of technology.
Reading of the Week: Assessing the Status of Digital Integration of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises in the Middle East and North Africa
Wilson Center
Migration has been a major issue affected the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has for decades. Many citizens across the region have sought to leave their homelands in search of life in foreign countries. Arab Barometer has been monitoring attitudes toward migration in the region since 2006. The newest Wave VIII surveys between 2023 and 2024 reveal that sizable percentages of people across the region want to leave their countries in pursuit of better living conditions elsewhere.
Migration in the Middle East and North Africa August 2024
Arab Barometer
Based on a comprehensive analysis drawing from extensive research, web scraping, data mining and interviews with stakeholders, this regional report focuses on the evolving trends, opportunities, and challenges shaping the digital economy, the future of work and the related skills requirements in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia.
New forms of work and platform work in the southern and eastern Mediterranean
European Training Foundation
Policy awareness about the challenges of climate change in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has been on the rise, especially with Egypt hosting the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) in 2022 and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hosting COP28 in 2023.
Reading of the Week: Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa - Mitigating Vulnerabilities and Designing Effective Policies
Carnegie Endowment For International Peace
Social, political, economic, and environmental changes have led to rapid urbanization and expansion of cities in Arab Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries, creating new opportunities, along with challenges, in the development and sustainability of cities. Emerging economic sectors in transportation, infrastructure services, and information and communication technologies will play a vital role in confronting the challenges.
Toward Smart Sustainable Cities in the MENA Region
Baker Institute for Public Policy
This latest MEAC Research into Action report examines the operations and limitations of peace systems in MENA. Multi-tiered peace systems, comprising institutions and mechanisms from hyper-local to state and regional, work to mitigate and resolve conflicts throughout the region. Through a conversation with Dr. Ahram, the report summarizes this academic research, distills its policy implications, and proposes practical and realistic approaches to conflict resolution beyond MENA.
In Search of a Middle East and North Africa Peace System
The United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
Policy awareness about the challenges of climate change in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has been on the rise, especially with Egypt hosting the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27) in 2022 and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hosting COP28 in 2023
Climate Change in the Middle East and North Africa: Mitigating Vulnerabilities and Designing Effective Policies
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
With the global economy is in its third year of deceleration amid declining inflation and oil prices, the Middle East and North Africa grew by just 1.9% in 2023, with a forecast for growth in 2024 at 2.7%. In addition to heightened uncertainty brought on by the conflict centered in Gaza, many countries in the region are also grappling with pre-existing vulnerabilities, including rising debt levels.
Conflict and debt in the Middle East and North Africa
Economic Research Forum
This report overviews and discusses the key findings from the original research of the EUROMED Migration V programme on migration narratives in the Euro-Mediterranean region. As part of the programme, eight reports were published, each dedicated to a different facet of migration narratives and each offering an original contribution that can help communicators offer a more balanced set of migration narratives.
Reading of the Week: Re-balancing migration narratives. Key lessons on communication from EUROMED Migration V
International Centre for Migration Policy Development
Around two-thirds of the population in the Middle East and North Africa lives in urban settlements, exceeding the global average of 55%, and these areas account for about 78% of energy use and more than 60% of greenhouse gas emissions. By 2050, the region’s population is projected to double
Climate-smart cities in the MENA region: Promise and pitfalls
Middle East Institute
This article is part of: Special Meeting on Global Collaboration, Growth and Energy for Development: The Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) faces multiple challenges, from conflict to economic woes, humanitarian problems, and mounting climate-related issues, all of which are exacerbated by a lack of cohesiveness.
4 steps for the Middle East and North Africa to develop intelligent economies
World Economic Forum
Owing to the unique amalgamation of its climatic attributes, its geographical positioning, and the intricate interplay of geopolitics and socioeconomic conditions within the majority of its constituent nations, the MENA region is one of the most susceptible regions to the physical repercussions of climate change.
Assessing Climate Adaptation Plans in the Middle East and North Africa
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The global economy is in its third year of deceleration amidst declining inflation and oil prices. The MENA region grew at 1.9 percent in 2023 and is forecasted to grow at 2.7 percent in 2024. And for the first time since the pandemic, MENA oil exporters and importers will grow at similar rates. The tragedy of the conflict in the Middle East has increased uncertainty.
Conflict And Debt In The Middle East And North Africa
World Bank Group
The Middle East and North Africa region is one of the lowest recipients of climate finance compared to other areas of the globe, such as East Asia and the Pacific Islands, despite MENA’s exposure to extreme climate risks. The MENA region’s share of climate financing from the big three global climate funds — the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), and the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
The great financing gap: The state of climate funding in MENA
Middle East Institute
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 discuss developments in Israel.
Regional Economic Outlook Middle East and North Africa
International Monetary Fund
The MENA region has one of the lowest female labor-participation rates in the world, and the lowest share of women in the total labor force, despite significant progress in reducing gender inequality in health and education. This situation has contributed to the so-called “MENA gender-equality paradox”
Trade and the Persistence of the MENA Gender-Equality Paradox
Policy Center for the New South
In Gaza, Lebanon, and beyond, Paris continues to favor multilateral approaches that incorporate key regional partners, though it understands Washington’s paramount role in achieving regional stability.
Frances Diplomatic Role in the Middle East Post-October 7
The Washington Institute for Near Policy
This paper explores the Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS) Agenda’s impact on youth involvement in conflict resolution, focusing on Euro-Mediterranean regions, specifically post-Arab Spring Yemen and Libya. The YPS Agenda emphasizes five pillars: participation, protection, violence prevention, partnerships, and disengagement/reintegration.
Meaningful inclusion? Enhancing the youth, peace and security agenda in euro-mediterranean conflict resolution
EuroMeSCo
The Middle East & North Africa has one of the lowest rates of female labor force participation globally. The latest estimate from the World Bank shows that only 19 percent of women over the age of 15 in MENA participate in the workforce. Within the region, however, there is a wide spectrum.
A Year in Review for Women in the MENA Region: Leaps and Stumbles
Wilson Center
In June 2023, the UN General Assembly elected Algeria to the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member to serve a two-year term that begins this month. This will be Algeria’s fourth term on the council, where it will hold one of three African seats and will be the only country representing the Arab region.
Algeria Takes a Seat on the UN Security Council
The Lawfare Institute
The food, energy, and debt crises in the Middle East and North Africa have exacerbated structural economic weaknesses of low- and middle-income countries, particularly Egypt, Tunisia, and Lebanon, creating mounting pressure on domestic political orders and worsening these countries’ geopolitical marginalization.
Misfortune to Marginalization: The Geopolitical Impact of Structural Economic Failings in Egypt, Tunisia, and Lebanon
Carnegie Middle East Center
What has been the human toll of the dizzying sequence of global macroeconomic shocks since 2020 for the Middle East and North Africa in terms of lost jobs and deteriorating livelihoods? A recent World Bank report highlights the additional 5.1 million people who have become unemployed, and explores the potential for them to be permanently scarred by the experience.
Balancing act: jobs and wages in MENA when crises hit
Economic Research Forum
The European Union has always devoted strong attention to humanitarian issues in the Sahel, especially as regards the food crisis. Since 2010, the EU has helped more than 100 million people lacking access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food, making it one of the world’s major donors in this area. In the Sahel region, the EU has been the second biggest donor after the United States with 850 million euro of aid, 35 per cent of which was allocated to the food security livelihoods (FSL) sector and 25 per cent to nutrition.
Beyond humanitarian aid: The EUs approach to alleviating food crisis in the Sahel at a time of global insecurity
Istituto Affari Internazionali
Solange Adelola Faladé (1925–2004) was a French-Beninois doctor, anthropologist and psychoanalyst. The first woman Franco-African
psychoanalyst in France, she founded her own psychoanalytical society, l’École freudienne, in 1983. The aim of this article is twofold:
on the one hand, to introduce Faladé’s life and works, and on the other, to discuss her theory of multiracialism.
A lesson for the world: Solange Faladés anticolonial multiracialism
Taylor & Francis Online
On the Horizon offers a snapshot into emergent conflicts and crises in the next three to six months in a clear, accessible format, identifying triggers, key dates to watch and potential behaviour of conflict actors, to support global conflict prevention efforts. This edition includes entries on Bangladesh, DR Congo, Ethiopia and Somaliland.
On the Horizon: October 2023-March 2024
International Crisis Group
Covid-19. The Russian invasion of Ukraine. Commodity price volatility. The rise of global inflation and interest rates. Currency depreciations among indebted middle-income economies. And now, natural disasters. As a sequence of events, the consequences can be both tragic and long-lasting. After analyzing the macroeconomic prospects of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region, this edition of the regional Economic Update assesses the human toll of macroeconomic shocks in terms of lost jobs and deteriorating livelihoods of the people of MENA.
Balancing Act: Jobs and Wages in the Middle East and North Africa When Crises Hit
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
With the United States shifting its security focus from the Middle East to the AsiaPacific, other major powers are seen as potential players that might fill the void in Middle East security. The fact that India is one such player is further manifested in the recently announced India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor.
India Looks West while the MENA Region Turns Eastwards
Middle East Institute
A number of MENA countries face high debt levels. Egypt, Jordan, and Tunisia are in a precarious situation. Lebanon is already in default. These debt difficulties are rooted in persistent structural issues related to governance and regulatory frameworks and bloated public sectors. The situation has been exacerbated by global economic fluctuations, the pandemic, and Russias invasion of Ukraine. Unless reforms are made quickly, debt restructurings may become inevitable. If inevitable, it is preferable to do them preemptively, as part of a broader set of corrective actions.
Debt Clouds over the Middle East
Economic Research Forum
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly altered employment and income distribution, impacting women and men differently. This study investigates the negative effects of COVID-19 on the labour market, focusing on the gender gap in five countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The study indicates whether women are more susceptible to losing their jobs, either temporarily or permanently, switching their primary occupation, and experiencing decreased working hours and income compared to men during the COVID-19 outbreak.
New evidence of gender inequality during COVID-19 outbreak in the Middle East and North Africa
Science Direct
Launched in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) a global infrastructure and development strategy that aims to connect Asia, Africa, and Europe through a network of land and maritime trade routes, was a significant turning point in China’s foreign policy and has become one of the most ambitious and far-reaching development initiatives in history.
A Decade of Chinas Belt and Road Initiative in the Middle East
The National Interest
Polling data from across the Arab world suggests a growing disillusionment with democracy and its role in fostering economic development. While such disillusionment is understandable, it is not necessarily accurate. This paper reviews analytic work and empirical data on governance, economic growth, foreign direct investment, and export diversification in an effort to understand whether metrics of “voice and accountability” are correlated with higher levels of economic growth and performance.
Voice, Accountability, and Economic Growth in the MENA Region
Middle East Council on Global Affairs
On 18 May 2022, the European External Action Service (EEAS) released a joint communication to the European Parliament and the Council on a strategic partnership with the Gulf. The document lays out a strategy to strengthen the European Union’s (EU’s) position in the wider Gulf space by deepening relations with the region’s rising geopolitical players, i.e. the six monarchies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC): Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman.
The EUs Strategic Partnership with the Gulf: One Year On
Brussels International Center
Polling data from across the Arab world suggests a growing disillusionment with democracy and its role in fostering economic development. While such disillusionment is understandable, it is not necessarily accurate.This paper reviews analytic work and empirical data on governance, economic growth, foreign direct investment, and export diversification in an effort to understand whether metrics of “voice and accountability” (which are often used as proxies for democratic development) are correlated with higher levels of economic growth and performance.
Voice, Accountability, and Economic Growth in the MENA Region
Middle East Council On Global Affairs
Businesses thriving on corrupt behavior and a weak and corrupt public sector often go hand in glove. The public sector is either the counterpart of corrupt businesspeople or is responsible for contributing to poor governance by failing to implement laws and regulations, or actively protects corrupt players via a corrupt, or simply incompetent, judiciary system. For corruption to grow in the private sector, authorities have to be complicit and, when they are, a culture of corruption starts spreading.
On the Need to Carefully Calibrate International Sanctions as an Instrument to Fight Corruption in the MENA Region
Euromesco
The United States has reportedly asked Israel to supply Ukraine with its long-retired Hawk missile defense system, despite the fact that the components of these systems are in serious disrepair and no longer operational. This request places Jerusalem in a difficult diplomatic position. While it wishes to stand with the Western bloc, it must also carefully manage its relationship with Moscow, which has the power to disrupt Israel’s efforts to control hostile Iranian movements in Syria as well as threaten Israel’s open channel to Russia’s remaining Jewish population.
Israeli Hawk Missiles and the War in Ukraine
The Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies
Imports of major arms by European states rose by 47 per cent between 2013–17 and 2018–22, while the global volume of international arms transfers fell by 5.1 per cent. There were decreases in arms transfers to Africa (–40 per cent), the Americas (–21 per cent), Asia and Oceania (–7.5 per cent) and the Middle East (–8.8 per cent) between the two periods. The five largest arms importers in 2018–22 were India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Australia and China. The five largest arms exporters were the United States, Russia, France, China and Germany.
Trends in International Arms Transfers, 2022
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
The Middle East and North Africa is generally thought to be among the parts of the world where corruption spreads the fastest- and this is despite the progress of legislation in some MENA countries and the economic wealth in others. The role of women in the fight against corruption in the region is often ignored and underestimated. This column argues that more gender egalitarianism in a fair system can enhance efforts to reduce corruption.
Gender and corruption in MENA countries
Economic Research Forum
Current Chinese basing capacity and force commitment in the region seem insufficient to support the level of economic and diplomatic engagement that appears to be Beijing’s new normal, so Washington should prepare for further expansion.
Chinas Growing Naval Influence in the Middle East
The Washington Institute
In Africa and the Arab World, throughout different stages of the war in Ukraine, the public debate and the popular discourse around it showed substantial sympathy towards Russia. While disinformation played a part in shaping those sentiments, the pro-Russian discourse cannot be reduced to just that. African and Arab social media users tend to adopt pro-Russian narratives on the Ukraine war when they resonate with locally relevant, long-established issues, worldviews, grievances, and prejudices.
Fertile ground: How Africa and the Arab World found common language with Russia on Ukraine
Polish Institute of International Affairs
In recent days, Jordan has led the way in Arab countries’ rapprochement with Syria. But Amman’s experience shows that, without regional coordination, bilateral normalization can win only limited concessions.
Jordans Experiences Highlight the Limitations of Renewed Ties With Syria
Carnegie Middle East Center
Washington will likely call upon Israel to participate in future multinational coalitions, which will entail IDF forces deploying to foreign countries as part of US-led operations. Israel has not participated in past coalitions due to regional threats and Washington’s desire to avoid complications with allied majority Muslim states. These two concerns were significantly diminished by the Abraham Accords, increasing the likelihood that Washington will seek Israel’s direct support in future campaigns.
Israels Future in Multinational Coalitions
The Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies
In late December, the UN General Assembly asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its opinion on the legality of the "ongoing Israeli occupation." The opinion will likely include critical statements about the illegality of Israel's conduct in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and about its "annexation" moves. Harsh assertions by the Court could significantly damage Israel's foreign relations, be used as ammunition by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, and even possibly affect the investigation into Israel's case at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The UN General Assembly refers Israel to the Hague
The Institute for National Security Studies
In recent days, Jordan has led the way in Arab countries’ rapprochement with Syria. But Amman’s experience shows that, without regional coordination, bilateral normalization can win only limited concessions.
Jordans Experiences Highlight the Limitations of Renewed Ties With Syria
Carnegie Middle East Center
La présence iranienne en Afrique est une question à la fois idéologique, économique et sécuritaire. La politique africaine de l’Iran a connu un nouvel élan avec la Révolution de 1979. Dans le cas de la politique africaine, on peut qualifier ce tiers-mondisme militant d’arrogant. Eneffet, dans l’imaginaire des élites politiques révolutionnaires khomeynistes, les relations avec les pays du Sud global sont à comprendre non seulement dans le cadre d’un anti-impérialisme de façade mais aussi dans la perspective d’une approche révolutionnaire visant à exporter leur modèle politico-religieux.
Les ambitions iraniennes en Afrique: Une présence idéologique, sécuritaire et économique
Policy Center for the new South
The present review is submitted pursuant to Security Council resolution 2642 (2022), in which the Council requested that the Secretary-General provide a special report on the humanitarian needs in the Syrian Arab Republic by no later than 10 December 2022. Also in the resolution, the Council called upon humanitarian agencies to step up further initiatives to broaden the humanitarian activities in the Syrian Arab Republic, including water, sanitation, health, education, electricity where essential to restore access to basic services, and shelter early recovery projects.
Report of the Secretary-General: Humanitarian needs in the Syrian Arab Republic
UN Security Council
The MED This Week newsletter provides expert analysis and informed comments upon the MENA region’s most significant issues and trends. Today, we place the spotlight upon COP27, the 27th annual UN meeting, hosted this year in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh.
COP 27: Relaunching Climate Action in a Burning MENA region
The Mediterranean Dialogue
The workforce challenge is among the most complex and urgent socio-economic and political challenges facing the Middle East and North Africa today. The growth of large and youthful populations is colliding with the constraints of slow growth and investment, which makes it impossible for regional markets to absorb surplus labor. This report presents an analysis of workforce development drawing from primary research conducted in Jordan, Tunisia, and Oman and it breaks down the problem into a set of supply and demand side factors.
Ready for Work: An Analysis of Workforce Asymmetries in the Middle East and North Africa
Wilson Center
It is hard for anyone who has not traveled extensively in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) over a period of decades to realize just how much each nation in the region has changed in terms of basic demographics. There has been a massive increase in population in every MENA country since the end of World War II and the colonial period, and the nations in the Arab/Persian Gulf are no exception.
Demographic Change in the Arab/Persian Gulf A case Study by Country
Center for Strategic & International Studies
For the past two decades, literature has been exploring the interconnection between conflicts and climate change. However, their link is still debated, the latter being commonly identified as a ‘threat multiplier’ on political, security and socioeconomic drivers for intrastate violence. Only a few literatures have yet examined specifically the interactions between climate change and terrorism, and even fewer have been applying them to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) context. Although ambiguous, there is a tangible nexus between the two phenomena, probable to broaden in the future as global warming will continue to increase, which is particularly relevant to explore in the MENA context.
Exploring the Climate-Terror Nexus in the MENA Region
Brussels International Center