Economic Research Forum (ERF)

Mustapha K. Nabli

Managing editors

Mustapha K. Nabli
North Africa Bureau of Economic Studies Intl

Mustapha K. Nabli is international consultant. He served as Governor of the Central Bank of Tunisia during 2011-2012. Prior to that he held various positions at the World Bank, including Chief Economist for the Middle East and North Africa region. From 1990 to 1995 he was Minister of Planning and Economic Development in the Government of Tunisia. Prior to that he held the position of Chairman of the Tunis Stock Exchange and various academic positions. He holds an MA and a Ph.D. degrees in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles. He is an ERF senior associate.

Content by this Author

How can the digital economy benefit everyone in the Arab world—and prevent the region from falling farther behind?

Digitalization is one of the main forces shaping the modern global economy—and an area in which the Arab world has fallen behind. Policy-makers in the region must find ways to capitalize on the enormous dividends of new digital technologies and mitigate their risks. Reaping the benefits will require improved education and training, better cybersecurity, more private sector support, and international cooperation.

Tunisia’s experiences with industrial policy and export diversification

What has been the role of industrial policy in Tunisia’s export diversification of the past 25 years? This column reports research evidence on the dynamics of diversification since 1995 for primary and resource-based products as well as manufactured products. The authors show that contrary to the conventional view that the country has achieved limited success in moving up the technological ladder in terms of the diversification and sophistication of its exports, there has been extensive progress.

Most read

Artificial intelligence and the renewable energy transition in MENA

Artificial intelligence has the potential to bridge the gap between abundant natural resources and the pressing need for reliable, sustainable power in the Middle East and North Africa. This column outlines the constraints and proposes policies that can address the challenges of variability of renewable resources and stress on power grids, and support the transformation of ‘sunlight’ to ‘smart power’.

Arab youth and the future of work

The Arab region’s labour markets are undergoing a triple transformation: demographic, digital and green. As this column explains, whether these forces evolve into engines of opportunity or drivers of exclusion for young people will hinge on how swiftly and coherently policy-makers can align education, technology and employment systems to foster adaptive skills, inclusive institutions and innovation-led pathways to decent work.

Digitalising governance in MENA: opportunities for social justice

Can digital governance promote social justice in MENA – or does it risk deepening inequality and exclusion? This column examines the evolution of digital governance in three sub-regions – Egypt, Jordan and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council – highlighting how data practices, transparency mechanisms and citizen trust shape the social outcomes of technological reform.

Wrong finance in a broken multilateral system: red flags from COP30-Belém

With the latest global summit on climate action recently wrapped up, ambitious COP pledges and initiatives continue to miss delivery due to inadequate commitments, weak operationalisation and unclear reporting systems. As this column reports, flows of climate finance remain skewed: loans over grants; climate mitigation more than climate adaptation; and weak accountability across mechanisms. Without grant-based finance, debt relief, climate-adjusted lending and predictable multilateral flows, implementation of promises will fail.

Why political connections are driving business confidence in MENA

This column reports the findings of a new study of how the political ties of firms in the Middle East and North Africa boost business confidence. The research suggests that this optimism is primarily driven by networked access to credit and lobbying, underscoring the need for greater transparency and institutional reform in corporate governance.




Linkedin