Middle Eastern And North African Countries Research Articles

COVID-19 parent stress in Middle Eastern and North African countries: Relations to family adjustment.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been stressful for individuals worldwide, including parents. Most research investigating stress during the pandemic has focused on single stressors in relation to outcomes and has been conducted in Western countries. Among parents from Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries, the present study used latent class analysis to identify specific subgroups of individuals based on combinations of stressful events experienced during the first two waves of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Whether individuals in these classes differed on levels of both adaptive (individual resilience, family cohesion) and maladaptive outcomes (depressive symptoms) was tested. Finally, perceived marital satisfaction was tested as a moderator of relations between class membership and adjustment outcomes. Participants were 545 parents (66.8% women, Mage = 35.79 years) recruited online who indicated presence or absence of experiencing 21 stressors across domains such as a family member contracting COVID, increased caregiving burden, work-related stress, and child adjustment problems. Three latent classes were identified, with one group characterized by work and child adjustment stress, one by child adjustment stress only, and one by low levels of stress across domains. The two higher stress groups reported increased depression. No associations with positive outcomes were found. Martial quality was most important for impacting greater resilience for those individuals experiencing child adjustment stress. This study provides evidence that COVID-related stress had disproportionate impact across parents in MENA countries. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Does the board of directors play a role in mitigating real and accrual-based earnings management in the MENA context?

Purpose In light of the key role attributed to the board of directors as a monitoring tool to constrain earnings management practices, this study aims to examine the effect of some board attributes on accrual-based earnings management and real earnings management in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) context, whose institutional, economic and legal environment is markedly different from that of most organization for economic cooperation and development countries. Design/methodology/approach The authors selected a sample of 161 nonfinancial companies from nine MENA countries between 2014 and 2021 (corresponding to an unbalanced data panel of 486 observations). The authors used the generalized least squares regression test to examine the relationship between board attributes and earnings management. Findings The authors found that three board attributes (size, independence and gender diversity) have no effect on both types of earnings management practices, while CEO duality has no effect on accrual-based earnings management but has a significant and negative effect on real earnings management. Overall, the results suggest that most board attributes do not play a crucial role in reducing earnings management. Research limitations/implications The results provide valuable insights into the universal role of corporate governance mechanisms and raise questions about the role of the board of directors in improving reporting quality in the MENA context. Practical implications Regulators should adapt corporate governance mechanisms to the characteristics of the institutional context in which they are inserted. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to examine the effect of various board characteristics on both types of earnings management practices in the MENA context. It also provides the first empirical evidence of the relationship between board gender diversity and earnings management in the MENA region.

The impact of fiscal deficit on economic growth: An empirical study in selected MENA countries

The purpose of this article is to investigate how the fiscal deficit affects economic growth in five Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries: Bahrain, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Jordan. These economies are bewildered by their high deficit levels, and their weak investment growth keeps them from achieving economic growth. This investigation, which spans the years 1995 through 2020, uses the ARDL (autoregressive distributed lag) methodology. The author selected four variables for this study: economic growth serves as the dependent variable, while the set of independent variables includes economic growth (GDPG), gross fixed capital formation as a percentage of GDP (GFCF), deficit as a percentage of GDP (DEFICIT), and inflation (INF). The long-run results showed that there is a negative link between economic growth and deficit; however, a positive relationship existed between inflation and economic growth. Gross fixed capital formation did not show any significant relationship with economic growth in the long run. In the short run, the results showed that inflation has a negative relationship with economic growth. The remaining variables, deficit, and gross fixed capital formation did not show a significant relationship with economic growth.

Examining the Circumplex Value Structure and the Person-Environment Value Congruence Hypothesis in Middle Eastern and North-African (MENA) Countries

This study is set forth to address two objectives first, to examine the quasi-circumplex value structure in a sample of six Middle Eastern and North-African (MENA) countries (Jordan, Tunisia, Sudan, Palestine, Egypt, and Morocco; N = 800 in each), and second, to test whether the degree of fit between individuals’ pursued values and those values (i.e., the congruence hypothesis) prevailing in their society predicts their level of wellbeing. To address the first objective, we applied multi-dimensional scaling, and to address the second objective we operationalized value congruence as the difference between people's individual value score and their country-level average, assessing the effect of value congruence by conducting response surface analysis with facets of wellbeing as outcomes and personal and reference-group value priorities as predictors. Data for this study were derived from the Arab Psychology Index (API) which applied a stratified random sampling to obtain representative samples from the participating countries in 2019-2020. Our results indicate that the theorized quasi-circumplex structure of human values could not be replicated in MENA countries and the degree and specific nature of this deviation varies between MENA countries. Study results lend support to the congruence hypothesis, and this was true across the three indicators of wellbeing deployed (flourishing, prosociality, and social relations), although the support was stronger for social relations, less so for proscociality, and least for flourishing. Insights into these findings are offered and theoretical implications of the findings to are discussed.

Food security and multicommodity agricultural international trade: Quantifying optimal consumer subsidies for nutritional needs

AbstractHundreds of millions of people are now facing food insecurity as challenges from climate change, the aftereffects of the COVID‐19 pandemic, and strife and conflicts make availability of food at reasonable prices challenging. International trade has enabled the reallocation of agricultural products, essential for nutrition, from countries with supply markets to other points of demand and has been the subject of an increasing number of policy interventions by governments. In this paper, a multicommodity international trade network equilibrium model is constructed with the inclusion of nutritional minimal standards to support food security, accompanied by consumer subsidies, for which explicit formulae are provided. The theoretical and computational framework is based on variational inequalities. Numerical examples focusing on Ukraine and MENA (Middle Eastern and North African) countries and a staple commodity of wheat demonstrate the modeling and policy framework.

MENA oil exporters need a renewable energy transition before the oil wells run dry: A special focus on innovation, financial development, and governance

Unlike previous studies, this paper specifically casts light on Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) oil exporters that desperately need to give a strong boost to renewable energy (RE) sources and export rather than uselessly burn their hydrocarbon resources, which support an overwhelming part of their economies. This paper extends the previous research by investigating the impact of oil revenues, innovation, financial development, and governance on renewable energy generation in eight oil‐rich MENA countries over the period 1996–2020 using the three‐stage least squares (3SLS) estimator, which is asymptotically more efficient than the two‐stage least squares (2SLS) employed in the similar‐scoped study of Bellakhal et al. (Energy Economics, 2019, 84, 104541). Furthermore, this study aims to detect structural changes in the econometric relationships between variables depending on a novel test with structural breaks proposed by Karavias and Tzavalis (Computational Statistics & Data Analysis, 2014, 76, 391–407). The main findings indicate that oil rents negatively and significantly affect RE production in MENA oil exporters in general and in non‐GCC countries in particular. While renewable energy production in the GCC countries is positively and significantly affected by oil rents. Innovation‐led RE increases at a greater pace in the GCC countries than in their non‐Gulf counterparts. renewable energy production appears to be positively and significantly affected by financial development and governance in oil‐rich MENA countries.

Bank efficiency in Middle East and North African countries: Does political connection type matter?

This study examines the effects of the political connections of chief executive officers (CEOs) or directors on technical, allocative, and cost bank efficiencies examining a panel of 144 banks operating in 12 Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries observed over the 2008–2021 period. Using random effect tobit regressions, we find that the three types of political connections explored (aggregate, CEO, and board of directors) have negative effects on banks’ technical and cost efficiencies. In addition, CEO political connections exhibit superior explanatory power. These findings remain robust when we consider the sample in terms of monarchist and republican countries. Further evidence reveals that the effect of political connections is observed more strongly during the pandemic period (2020–2021) than during the 2008–2009 financial crisis period. Our results indicate that banks in MENA countries must strategically regulate bank political connections during crises and consistently thereafter. Our findings have implications for regulators investors and authorities in MENA countries.

The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment, Economic Growth, Trade, and Covid-19 on Unemployment: Evidences from MENA

The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of foreign direct investment, economic growth, international trade, Covid-19 pandemic on unemployment rates in six developing Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries, as well as members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), over period 2010 to 2021. Quantitative approaches using panel regression fixed effect model are utilized. According to the findings of this study, all of the variable used include foreign direct investment, economic growth, international trade and the Covid-19 pandemic simultaneously have a substantial impact on unemployment rate in six MENA countries. While partially, foreign direct investment, economic growth and international trade have a strong influence in declining unemployment in six MENA countries, while the Covid-19 pandemic variable has a positive relation and insignificant effect on the unemployment rate which indicates that statistically there is no significant difference of the unemployment rate in the years before and during Covid-19 pandemic. In conclusion, since the MENA countries has experienced a high concentration of unemployment particularly among youth for a long time, the government ought to concentrate more on facilitating skills training support for young people. This will ensure that the young people have added value and are qualified in the sectors and fields offered, particularly in foreign direct investment, allowing the FDI to absorb domestic workers. The youth can so, collectively, escape unemployment and enhance productivity in a country, which will also raise the GDP of the country

Globalization, institutions, and environmental quality in Middle East and North African countries.

Sustainable development has received significant attention due to rapidly rising environmental issues, and finding solutions to these issues caused by various indicators are the subject of research nowadays. To this end, the increasing globalization and institutional quality to address environmental challenges have become hot subject and need better attention. Accordingly, this study enhances the literature by examining the role of political stability, the rule of law, control of corruption, and globalization on the environment for 14 Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries between 1996 & 2018, applying cross-sectional augmented autoregressive distributed lags (CS-ARDL) approach. The short and long-run estimates obtained from CS-ARDL confirm that globalization, the rule of law, political stability, and corruption control significantly reduce carbon emissions (CO2e). Contrarily, energy production, financial development, and economic growth have significant positive effects, suggesting they raise CO2e. The study also estimates a robustness analysis with the Driscoll-Kraay estimator, confirming results on signs and magnitude identical to those with CS-ARDL. These results drive the MENA countries to adhere to environmental standards to reduce CO2e strictly. Environmental-friendly industrial techniques should be employed, mainly while producing. The governments of these countries should facilitate the governance process through the globalization of environmental products to ensure long-term environmental sustainability.

Prescription drug abuse in migrants from Middle Eastern and North African countries: a review

IntroductionIn recent years, there has been a rise in misuse of low-cost prescription pills across Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries. In Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco, for example, the consumption of prescription medications has dramatically increased, particularly amongst young and marginalized groups. Drugs such as clonazepam and pregabalin are extremely popular in these regions, as they are relatively inexpensive and perceived as safe. With the migration of MENA citizens to Europe, it is likely that mental health services will come across substance use disorders related to these medications.ObjectivesThe authors aim to analyse prescription medication misuse reports from MENA countries, specifically pregabalin and clonazepam, and review the pharmacological, neurobiological and social factors that contribute to their potential for abuse.MethodsNarrative review of articles referenced on PubMed and Google Scholar.ResultsPregabalin and clonazepam are widely used in psychiatry and neurology. Pregabalin is an alpha 2 omega ligand with supposed GABA-mimetic properties. Anecdotal reports suggest that pregabalin, used recreationally in amounts up to 3-20 times the therapeutic doses, possesses both sedative and psychedelic effects. Experimenters are mainly individuals with a history of recreational polydrug use, who are aware that pregabalin is not included in standard drug monitoring tests, with this molecule being used in some instances as a legal substitute of common illegal drugs. Clonazepam is a benzodiazepine that combines high potency and a long duration of action and is said to cause euphoria at doses over 8mg. It is very popular and affordable, placing consistently in the top three of benzodiazepines sales across the globe. Clonazepam has potential for tolerance build up and severe withdrawal symptoms. These medications are frequently used together and in combination with other substances such as alcohol and opiates, increasing the risk for respiratory failure and death.ConclusionsPrescription medications such as pregabalin and clonazepam are extremely accessible, inexpensive and highly addictive substances, whose abuse is well disseminated across MENA countries. With migratory flows from this region, the prevalence of misuse of these drugs in Europe is expected to increase. Therefore, physicians should be aware of their potential for abuse and carefully evaluate patients’ previous history before prescribing these medications.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Coverage and methods of surveillance of healthcare-associated infections in Middle Eastern and North African countries

BackgroundSurveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) is a cornerstone for effective infection prevention and control (IPC) programs. The objective was to evaluate the coverage and methods of HAI surveillance in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries. MethodsA cross-sectional study targeted IPC staff working in MENA countries using the Infection Control Network electronic database of the Arab countries. The study focused on self-reported surveillance-related characteristics of IPC staff, facilities, and the IPC program. ResultsA total of 269 IPC staff were included. They were mainly females (68%), nurses (63%), and working in GCC countries (83%). Approximately 69% of covered facilities had surveillance activities. Hand hygiene, multidrug-resistant organisms, central line-associated bloodstream infections, and catheter-associated urinary tract infections were the most common surveillance activities (>90%). The surveillance workload consumed 27% of the average weekly working time. The scores of performing multiple surveillance, with appropriate methods and tools, were 83%, 67%, and 61% (respectively). Appropriate surveillance methods and/or tools were linked to GCC region, CBIC qualifications, surveillance training, specific setting (acute care and long term), staff-to-bed ratio, presence and active function of IPC committee, presence of IPC annual plan, communications with health care workers, and leadership support. ConclusionsWhile most health care facilities in the MENA region perform multiple surveillance, surveillance methods and tools are still suboptimal and their optimization should be a priority.

Quod vadis? The effect of youth unemployment and demographic pressure on migration in the MENA region

AbstractRecent trends in international migration reveal increasing migration outflows from Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries. This development is accompanied by a massive rise in youth unemployment and a major increase in the young population in this region. This paper provides a quantitative assessment of migration patterns and analyses the interacting effect of the unfavourable combination of youth unemployment and demographic pressure on migration decisions. Based on an assessment of bilateral migration flows from 19 MENA to 34 OECD countries between 1995 and 2020, we find that youth unemployment plays a significant role in explaining emigration flows from MENA countries. We also find that the migration‐generating effect of youth unemployment is contingent upon demographic pressure in the youth cohorts and increases with an increasing number of youths.

Stock and exchange rate movements in the MENA countries: A Markov Switching –VAR Model

Purpose ― This article explores the causal link between stock and currency returns in The Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries from January 2011 through February 2020. Methods ― This study uses the Vector autoregressive (VAR) and the Markov switching vector autoregressive (MS-VAR) models to investigate the dynamic causality between equity and exchange rate markets. Findings ― Results indicate that this relation depends on the state of the markets. Furthermore, generally, equity returns have a significant impact on the currency markets, whatever the market state. Implication ― Regime shifts in the relationship between stock and exchange rate markets are significant for portfolio allocation because they help investors improve their investment decisions through knowledge of the dynamic link between these markets. Originality ― This study adds to the literature on the relationship between exchange rates and stock prices in the MENA countries, which have become attractive destinations for international investors due to their higher returns.

Big N auditors and the quality of earnings: Evidence from Middle Eastern and North African countries

In recent years, the importance of audit quality has garnered significant attention by managements, academics and the general public. In this study, we examine the relationship between Big N auditors and earnings quality in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries, where cultural and institutional contexts are quite different from those in Western countries. In addressing this issue, we employ three audit quality metrics – value relevance, abnormal accruals and earnings persistence – and use the propensity score matching technique to deal with the potential endogeneity arising from the nature of external auditor choices. Contrary to the view that Big N auditors supply quality-differentiated audits, the results obtained employing a cross-country sample of publicly listed non-financial firms of 10 MENA countries during 2009–2019 provide evidence that Big N auditors are insignificantly associated with the three measures of audit quality. Furthermore, we find that the differences in audit quality between the two auditor groups are mainly due to the clients’ innate characteristics, rather than the competency of Big N auditors. Our results hold after performing different sensitivity analyses. Overall, our findings challenge the conventional notion that Big N auditors deliver quality-differentiated audits.

National Governance Index, Corruption Index and Growth Rate—International Evidence from Sub-Saharan and MENA Countries

In an international setting of developing countries, applying advanced statistical estimation approaches such as the system generalized method of moments (GMM), two-stage least square (2SLS) regressions, and cluster analysis, this paper revisits the impact of macro-level governance quality and the corruption index on the economic growth rate. We use cross-country panel data for 40 sub-Saharan and the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries over the period of 2009–2020. The empirical results document the positive and negative effects of the national governance index and the corruption index on the economic growth rate. Additionally, foreign direct investment and population have a positive impact on the economic growth rate and trade openness has a negative impact. The study evaluates the robustness of these associations through a series of tests. These findings have important policy implications for policymakers and regulators in developing countries. In particular, the study recommends the implementation of an anti-corruption campaign and improving country-level governance quality that could encourage increased foreign direct investment for an accelerated economic growth rate. These will further enhance accountability, transparency, the rule of law, social responsibility, the public voice, and government effectiveness.

Infection prevention and control staffing and programs in Middle Eastern Countries.

Infection prevention and control (IPC) programs in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries are evolving. The objective was to characterize IPC personnel and programs in MENA countries, with special emphasis on the differences between Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and non-GCC countries. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in 2019 among IPC members of the Arab Countries Infection Control Network (AcicN). The survey focused on three domains; demographic and professional characteristics, organizational structure, and IPC program characteristics. A total of 269 participants aged 39.9 ± 8.4 years were included in the study. Majority of the participants were females (67.7%), nurses (63.7%), and of Middle-Eastern origin (57.3%). 32.2% of the participants were certified by the Certification Board of Infection Control (CBIC). Only 22.7% of participants were satisfied with their current compensation. Surveillance was the most time-consuming task (26.6%), followed by isolation (12.4%), and investigation of outbreaks (12.1%). Majority of the facilities had at least one IPC personnel per 100 beds (60.9%), supported IPC program (63.9%), a formal IPC committee (93.7%), and an IPC plan (91.4%). Compared with non-GCC countries, GCC countries had significantly more frequent CBIC certification (p = 0.003), training in cleaning/sterilization (p = 0.010), supported IPC program (p = 0.010), formal IPC committee (p = 0.001), IPC plan (p = 0.001), and higher number of IPC personnel per 100 beds (p = 0.047). MENA countries had generally satisfactory IPC programs and to a lesser extent staffing, with considerable variability between countries with different resources.

Bank-Specific and Macroeconomic Determinants of Bank Liquidity Creation: Evidence from MENA Countries

Abstract This study measures liquidity creation within a sample of 153 banks operating in 12 Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries from 2008 to 2017. We found that these banks created a total of $461.32 billion in liquidity in 2017, approximately 1.51 times the total liquidity created in 2008, mainly driven by commercial banks in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. We also conducted an econometric analysis to investigate the internal and external factors affecting bank liquidity creation, applying a Fixed Effects model and the new Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MMQR). The results show that, among bank-specific factors, bank liquidity creation in MENA countries is related to capital, size, bank risk, deposits and profitability whilst market concentration does not appear to play a significant role. Regarding macroeconomic factors, inflation, unemployment, savings and monetary policy explain the variations in bank liquidity creation.

The perspective of antibiotic therapeutic challenges of brucellosis in the Middle East and North African countries: Current situation and therapeutic management.

Brucellosis is among the most prevalent zoonotic infections in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries, critically impacting human and animal health. A comprehensive review of studies on antibiotic susceptibility and therapeutic regimes for brucellosis in ruminants and humans in the MENA region was conducted to evaluate the current therapeutic management in this region. Different scientific databases were searched for peer-reviewed original English articles published from January 1989 to February 2021. Reports from research organizations and health authorities have been taken into consideration. Brucella melitensis and Brucella abortus have been reported from the majority of MENA countries, suggesting a massive prevalence particularly of B. melitensis across these countries. Several sporadic cases of brucellosis relapse, therapeutic failure, and antibiotic resistance of animal and human isolates have been reported from the MENA region. However, several studies proved that brucellae are still in-vitro susceptible to the majority of antibiotic compounds and combinations in current recommended World Health Organization (WHO) treatment regimens, for example, levofloxacin, tetracyclines, doxycycline, streptomycin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, tigecycline, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. The current review presents an overview on resistance development of brucellae and highlights the current knowledge on effective antibiotics regimens for treating human brucellosis.

The Impact of Corporate Governance on the Financial Performance of the Banking Sector in the MENA (Middle Eastern and North African) Region: An Immunity Test of Banks for COVID-19

The purpose of this paper is to measure the impact of internal and external corporate governance mechanisms on the financial performance of banks in the under-researched Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) region during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Bank annual reports, the Orbis Bank Focus database, and World Bank reports were used to collect both financial and non-financial information on the banking sector, followed by fixed effects regressions and two-stage least squares. Results showed that the corporate governance measures of presence of independent members on the board of directors, high ownership concentration, lack of political pressure on board members, and strong legal protection, had positive effects on bank financial performance. Corporate governance mechanisms, such as performance-based compensation, the presence of women on boards, moderate size of the board, and anti-takeover mechanisms had no significant impact on bank performance during the crisis period. An effective internal and external corporate governance mechanism could improve the financial performance of banks in MENA countries in times of pandemics and crises.

Hymen ‘repair’: Views from feminists, medical professionals and the women involved in the middle east, North Africa and Europe

In Europe, hymen ‘repair’ is controversial because it is often seen as a concession to immigrant groups that do not respect women’s sexual autonomy. But how is hymen ‘repair’ viewed in societies in which the norm is that women should not have premarital sex? And why do women want hymen ‘repair’? Hymen ‘repair’ is also controversial in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries because it is seen as undermining social mores about women and premarital sex. However, some Islamic leaders have defended the procedure. Women request hymen ‘repairs’ for a variety of reasons. Some have been sexually abused and may desire the surgery to overcome trauma. Some have had consensual sex and may fear sanctions, while others may see the surgery as a covert act of rebellion against the virginity rule. Still others may choose it to please their future husband. Hymen ‘repair’ is extensively discussed in MENA countries and in Europe. Feminists in MENA countries are divided over whether the surgery promotes sexual autonomy while, in the European debate, an important issue is whether the choice itself is an autonomous one that doctors should respect. Inspired by a relational approach to autonomy, I see the women involved as individuals with culturally informed identities and interests who may feel pressure to get the surgery yet are still capable of autonomy. I argue for a policy to stimulate debate in communities about the virginity norm and to make hymen ‘repair’ available to women. However, it should be combined with an attitude of sympathetic distrust, recognising that hymen ‘repair’ harms women’s dignity and authenticity.