Economy

COVID-19 in the Middle East and North Africa

Key Findings: Citizens in surveyed MENA countries are judging COVID-19 responses of governments based on the ability to manage the healthcare crisis and the economic fallout of the pandemic. Performance rating is highest where citizens rate both health, economic response well (Morocco). Performance rating is lowest where citizens rate both health, economic response poorly (Lebanon, Tunisia). Performance rating is mixed…

What Has Changed in Policing since the Arab Uprisings of 2011? Challenges to Reform and Next Steps

Since 2011, the police have been at the centre of the contestation rocking the Arab world. Part 1 mapped out some of the main modes of contestation and provided a preliminary assessment of their impact on police practices. This paper examines what is still holding up police reform attempts, presents possible future scenarios for policing practices in the region, and…

Youth in MENA: Findings from the Fifth Wave of the Arab Barometer

Key Findings: Youth economic frustration across MENA is increasing. Youth have little trust in governments, which are widely viewed as being corrupt, leading to a potential crisis of legitimacy in the region. However, views of youth differ relatively little from older generations in this regard. Youth are more likely to want to emigrate and to participate in informal politics. Arab…

Determinants of Public Attitudes Towards Immigrants: Evidence from Arab Barometer

What factors determine public opinion towards immigrants? This inquiry is especially crucial in the context of developing countries since they hold 80 per cent of global refugee populations. Lebanon, with the burden on its shoulders due to hosting about one million Syrians, offers a unique case to study the mechanisms driving the formation of attitudes towards immigrants. In this article,…

Employment and attitudes toward women among Syrian refugees

The current study examined employment rates and predictors of employment among Syrian refugees currently living in Lebanon and Jordan. This paper argues that men and women refugees have different experiences seeking out employment after resettlement due to patriarchal structures and attitudes toward women that are present in the Arab Middle East. The goals of this paper were a) to examine…