More than a decade after the Arab Spring, the Middle East and North Africa region finds itself facing momentous challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted economies, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine sent shockwaves through the region, with higher hydrocarbon prices, risks to food security and a drop in tourism. Beyond looms the threat of climate change. But challenging times provide opportunities for change. The region's private sector can seize the moment. It remains the hope for many young people and has the potential to drive a sustainable model of growth. The Enterprise Surveys, conducted by the EIB, EBRD and the World Bank, provide insight into what lies beneath the region's relatively slow growth, with a focus on the reasons for stagnating productivity and inadequate accumulation of human and physical capital in the private sector.
Surveys of nearly 6 000 businesses in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia and the West Bank and Gaza shed light on the state of the private sector in the Middle East and North Africa. More than a decade after the Arab Spring, the Middle East and North Africa region finds itself facing momentous challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted economies, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine sent shockwaves through the region, with higher hydrocarbon prices, risks to food security and a drop in tourism. Beyond looms the threat of climate change. But challenging times provide opportunities for change. The region's private sector can seize the moment. It remains the hope for many young people and has the potential to drive a sustainable model of growth. The Enterprise Surveys, conducted by the EIB, EBRD and the World Bank, provide insight into what lies beneath the region's relatively slow growth, with a focus on the reasons for stagnating productivity and inadequate accumulation of human and physical capital in the private sector.
Building on decades of experience working in Europe's neighbourhood, in Africa and around the world, under EU mandates and in support of EU policy priorities, EIB Global brings together all the financial, engineering and scientific expertise of the European Investment Bank to maximise impact. The new structure fosters strong, focused partnerships within Team Europe, with multilateral development banks and bilateral development agencies. With a stronger presence on the ground, it increases our cooperation with partner countries, clients, EU Member States and other development finance institutions. This publication reports on the first year of EIB Global. The first section reviews the development context, looking at global macroeconomic development and the different regions where EIB Global operates: EU neighbourhood countries sub-Saharan Africa the Western Balkans and Türkiye Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean The report then turns to the overarching priorities of EIB Global and the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus, examining investment needs and describing the response by EIB Global: Climate change Jobs and inclusive growth The Global Gateway The final part brings together all the information on the results and impact of EIB Global operations and the financial and non-financial contribution we make. It covers: How we measure results and impact Expected results of new projects EIB Global's contribution to new projects Evidence on the EIB's crowding-in effect Carbon footprint exercise Macroeconomic impact modelling Results of completed projects Lending volumes List of operations signed in 2022 A companion volume to this report, EIB Global Report: The Story, delves deeper into the rationale for, and experience gained from, individual EIB Global projects.
The long-standing informality debate in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region has taken on a new urgency as it looks for a pathway to more socially inclusive growth that is less reliant on fossil fuels. This is occurring against a backdrop of subpar labor market outcomes, further growth setbacks, and deteriorating fiscal and current account deficits in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic--and in the wake of high inflation and supply chain disruptions triggered by the Russian Federation-Ukraine war. 'Informality and Inclusive Growth in the Middle East and North Africa' aims to better understand the characteristics and incentive structure that have led to the prevalence of informal employment in three MENA countries--the Arab Republic of Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia. The report breaks new ground by adopting a comprehensive perspective to focus on the features of, and interrelationships among, different aspects of these countries' institutional landscapes to make sense of the complex incentive structure that workers and firms face when deciding between formal and informal options. Specifically, the report groups these issues in three broad realms: (1) entrepreneur-worker relations, (2) taxes and transfers, and (3) market conditions. 'This report is an extremely welcome addition to the literature on MENA labor markets. By analyzing the incentive structure and institutional factors that have led to the prevalence of informal employment in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, it points the way to policy actions that can be taken to reduce informality and increase social protection for workers. It is a must-read for anyone who cares about greater economic inclusion in MENA.' --Ragui Assaad, Professor, Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota 'A compelling account of the implications of informality in the workforce and how economies of MENA can design appropriate policy responses. This timely report comes amid multiple social reforms in MENA and is a must-read for policy practitioners and economists in the region.' --Karim El Aynaoui, Executive President, Policy Center for the New South 'This report is particularly timely given the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent crises have had on living standards and poverty rates around the world and especially in MENA countries. While the focus on boosting growth and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals has revolved around financing, the report sheds new light on the benefits that tackling informality through institutional, regulatory, and policy changes could present to achieving these goals.' --Mahmoud Mohieldin, Executive Director, International Monetary Fund
Africa welcomes business investment and offers some of the world's highest returns and impacts Africa has tremendous economic potential and offers rewarding opportunities for global businesses looking for new markets and long-term investments with favorable returns. Africa has been one of the world's fastest-growing regions over the past decade, and by 2030 will be home to nearly 1.7 billion people and an estimated $6.7 trillion worth of consumer and business spending. Increased political stability in recent years and improving regional integration are making market access easier, and business expansion will generate jobs for women and youth, who represent the vast majority of the population. Current economic growth and poverty-alleviation efforts mean that more than 43 percent of the continent's people will reach middle- or upper-class status by 2030. Unlocking Africa's Business Potential examines business opportunities in the eight sectors with the highest potential returns on private investment—the same sectors that will foster economic growth and diversification, job creation, and improved general welfare. These sectors include: consumer markets, agriculture and agriprocessing, information and communication technology, manufacturing, oil and gas, tourism, banking, and infrastructure and construction. The book's analysis of these sectors is based on case studies that identify specific opportunities for investment and growth, along with long-term market projections to inform decision-making. The book identifies potential risks to business and offers mitigation strategies. It also provides policymakers with solutions to attract new business investments, including how to remove barriers to business and accelerate development of the private sector.
The Covid-19 pandemic has aggravated the tension between large development needs in infrastructure and scarce public resources. To alleviate this tension and promote a strong and job-rich recovery from the crisis, Africa needs to mobilize more financing from and to the private sector.
Critical examinations of efforts to make governments more efficient and responsive Political upheavals and civil wars in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have obscured efforts by many countries in the region to reform their public sectors. Unwieldy, unresponsive—and often corrupt—governments across the region have faced new pressure, not least from their publics, to improve the quality of public services and open up their decisionmaking processes. Some of these reform efforts were under way and at least partly successful before the outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2010. Reform efforts have continued in some countries despite the many upheavals since then. This book offers a comprehensive assessment of a wide range of reform efforts in nine countries. In six cases the reforms targeted core systems of government: Jordan's restructuring of cabinet operations, the Palestinian Authority's revision of public financial management, Morocco's voluntary retirement program, human resource management reforms in Lebanon, an e-governance initiative in Dubai, and attempts to improve transparency in Tunisia. Five other reform efforts tackled line departments of government, among them Egypt's attempt to improve tax collection and Saudi Arabia's work to improve service delivery and bill collection. Some of these reform efforts were more successful than others. This book examines both the good and the bad, looking not only at what each reform accomplished but at how it was implemented. The result is a series of useful lessons on how public sector reforms can be adopted in MENA.
'From Privilege to Competition: Unlocking Private-Led Growth in the Middle East and North Africa' sheds new light on the difficult quest for stronger and more diversified growth in a region of unquestionable potential. It underlines the need to strengthen reforms in many areas specifically, by reducing policy uncertainty and improving credit and real estate markets. It also highlights other important issues that restrain the credibility and impact of reforms in many parts of the region: conflicts of interest between politicians and businesses, an investment climate that favors a few privileged firms, and a dominant private sector that often opposes reforms. The book recommends that countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) engage in more credible reform agendas by improving the implementation of policies in a manner that will reduce discretion and privileges. This renewed commitment to stronger growth would entail several developments. First, governments will need to reduce opportunities for rent-seeking and foster competition. Second, they will need to work to reform institutions: private sector development policies will need to be systematically anchored in elements of institutional and public sector reforms in order to reduce discretion and opacity and improve the quality of services to firms. Third, they will need to mobilize all stakeholders, including larger representations from the private sector, around dedicated long-term growth strategies. Short of such a fundamental shift in the way private sector policies are formulated and implemented, investor expectations that governments are committed to reform will be limited. It will take political will and time to support sustained reforms that credibly convince investors and the public that changes are real, deep, and set to last. MENA countries are endowed with strong human capital, good infrastructure, immense resources, and a great deal of untapped creativity and entrepreneurship. The economic and social payoff of embarking on a more ambitious private-led growth agenda could thus be immense for all.
"While water professionals have been advocating comprehensive water reforms for years and many countries have improved their water policies and institutions, some of the most politically sensitive elements of reform remain untouched. This report suggests that a series of factors are now emerging that represent a potential opportunity to break this impasse." "Making the Most of Scarcity will be of interest to readers working in the areas of agribusiness and markets, agriculture, urban and rural development, water supply, and water resources, as well as to those responsible for setting policies in the areas of environment, economics, and social protection."--BOOK JACKET.
