The economics of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is a large, complex, and diverse region, which faces a wide range of economic issues. The purpose of this book is not to provide a country-by-country study but rather to deal with general themes found in Arab MENA and Israel, such as problems associated with growth and structural change; the role of State-intervention and the development of oligarchies in country-specific local markets; labor market imperfections driven by gender bias; technology gaps and endogenous growth; capital market development in a restricted financial model based on religious constraints; savings and investment behavior in a model of state subsidization and intervention designed to control local development; and the role of the state in inducing bottom-up corruption. This approach helps us to raise general questions about the growth experience of the region as a whole and at the same time focus on key sector issues, such as the relevance of Islamic banking to capital formation and the role for international trade and investment. Data sources used in the volume include country-specific data, World Bank, UN, IMF and OECD. The new chapters added in this 2nd edition include three broad explanations of the Arab Spring. First, the lack of transparent markets; second, the impact of distortionary economic policies; and third, the impact of corruption. Old chapters are revised with updated data, a discussion of the role of the "State" and "Oligarchies" in the economies of all the MENA countries, an in-depth exploration of the investment in human capital and growth and an identification of the most important binding constraints to economic development in the Arab MENA and Israel