Economic Research Forum (ERF)

Inequality in the Middle East

Survey estimates suggest that inequality in the Middle East is not particularly high despite considerable political conflict. This VoxEU column ...

How the Middle East oil pricing system emerged in the 1940s

The discovery of giant oil fields in the Persian Gulf in the 1940s was a turning point in the history ...

Gaining competitiveness through trade credit: evidence from Turkey

The removal of the Multi-Fibre Arrangement quotas that governed global trade in textiles and clothing until the end of 2004 ...

How the Middle East can escape the middle-income trap

The Middle East and North Africa urgently needs a new social contract focused on economically empowering the hundreds of millions ...

Technical and vocational education in Egypt: the missing link

Recent notable developments in Egypt’s educational system include an agreement between the government and private firms to enhance the provision ...

The bargaining power of disabled wives: evidence from Iraq

The rate of labour force participation of women in MENA countries remains lower than in any other part of the ...

Asset inequality in Egypt, Ethiopia, Jordan and Tunisia

Measures of income or consumption alone provide an inadequate representation of living standards and economic inequality across households. This column ...

Financial systems in MENA: time to embrace digital technologies

The growing use of digital technologies in financial services provision holds promise for MENA countries to improve their financial systems ...

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Challenges of conflict and industrial policy for development

How effective is industrial policy as a tool for long-term economic growth and development? Against the backdrop of the conflict currently engulfing the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan (MENAAP), a new report argues that while industrial policies are widely used across the region, they can only address market failures and foster growth when they are aligned with country capabilities, implemented with accountability and backed by capable institutions.

The green transition in MENA economies: challenges and policy pathways

The economies of the Middle East and North Africa are at a critical turning point. Global decarbonisation pressures, energy market volatility and technological transformation are increasingly challenging hydrocarbon-based growth models. This column argues that the green transition is not only an environmental necessity but also a strategic economic imperative.

Beyond job creation: how can Egypt’s gender gap in work be closed?

More than 2 million jobs are needed each year to absorb new entrants into Egypt’s labour market and raise the country’s employment rate. The job challenge is even more acute for women, whose labour force participation remains low despite recent gains in education. This column reports on the second Development Dialogue, an ERF–World Bank Group joint initiative, which brought together students, scholars, policy-makers and private sector leaders at the American University in Cairo to consider how the country’s gender gap in work can be closed.

The political economy of algorithms in the Middle East

The Middle East is entering a new political-economic era – one in which algorithms, data and artificial intelligence may become as strategically important as oil once was. Across the region, governments are investing heavily in digital infrastructure, smart governance and AI-driven economic transformation. This column outlines how AI and algorithmic governance are reshaping power, inequality and state capacity in the region.




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