Economic Research Forum (ERF)

Georges Harb

Author

Georges Harb
Associate Professor of Economics, Adnan Kassar School of Business, Lebanese American University (LAU)

Georges Harb is an Associate Professor of Economics at the Adnan Kassar School of Business, at the Lebanese American University (LAU). Before joining LAU, Georges was a full-time faculty member at the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics at Notre Dame University (Lebanon) where he taught economics (2014-2021). He has also served on several occasions as a consultant for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), and as a contributor for the Economist Intelligence Unit. He holds a PhD in Economics from Sciences Po Paris, an MA in International Economics from Sciences Po Paris, and an MSc in Econometrics from the University of Nottingham. His research interests include: growth/productivity; MENA economies; tourism economics; and trade/regional integration.

Content by this Author

Making aid-for-trade more effective in the MENA region

Aid-for-trade represents an important opportunity for developing countries to enhance their trade capacities. But the positive effect of aid-for-trade on exports can hinge on the quality of institutions in recipient countries. According to research reported in this column, in the Middle East and North Africa, it is specific aid types – such as aid to support trade policy reform and aid to enhance productive capacities – that matter most for exports.

Manufacturing and productivity in MENA: a long-term perspective

Productivity in the manufacturing sector is key for economic growth and employment opportunities in most developing economies. This column looks at total factor productivity (TFP) – the portion of output growth that comes from technological progress – in eight countries in the Middle East and North Africa over the four decades since 1980. Despite an overall increase in manufacturing TFP in the region during this period, it is still lagging behind other parts of the world.

Most read

Empowering Egypt’s young people for the future of work

Egypt’s most urgent priority is creating more and better jobs for its growing youth population. This column reports on the first Development Dialogue, an ERF–World Bank joint initiative, which brought together students, scholars, policy-makers and private sector leaders at Cairo University to confront the country’s labour market challenge. The conversation explored why youth inclusion matters, what the data show and how dialogue and the forthcoming Country Economic Memorandum can inform practical pathways to accelerate job creation.

Preparing youth for the workforce of the future

As economies undergo rapid digital and green transformations, young people face a growing mismatch between their skills and what the modern labour market needs. This column argues that enabling youth to compete in the workforce of the future requires systemic reforms in education, skills formation and labour market institutions, especially in developing economies.

Connectivity and conflict: understanding the risks of inequality in the Middle East

While high inequality does not always lead to conflict, new research reported in this column shows that widespread internet access acts as a catalyst, transforming economic grievances into political instability. For policy-makers in the Middle East and North Africa, this means that as digital connectivity expands, the security costs of ignoring economic disparities rise dramatically. The combination of idle youth, high inequality and high-speed internet is a volatile mix.

The political economy of stalled structural reforms in MENA

There is a persistent pattern to the structural reforms that are required to underpin economic progress in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa: ambitious strategies are announced and partially implemented, but ultimately they are diluted or reversed. This column argues that the repeated stalling of reform is not primarily a failure of economic design. Rather, it reflects deep-seated political economy constraints rooted in rent dependence, elite bargaining and weak institutional credibility. Without addressing these underlying dynamics, reform efforts are likely to remain symbolic rather than transformative.

Closing the gender gap in political participation in MENA

Women across the Middle East and North Africa participate less than men in politics – not only in political parties and elections, but also in petitions, boycotts, protests and strikes. This column reports evidence from ten countries showing that differences in education, employment and political attitudes explain part of this disparity, yet a significant gender gap remains.




Linkedin