IMF ‘call for action’ on Inclusive Growth in MENA

Morocco: Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, issued a “Call for Action” yesterday following her meeting with ministers of finance and central bank governors of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Pakistan during the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings.

“The IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings have returned to the Arab World after 20 years when we were gathered in Dubai. Much has changed over the last two decades, but perhaps one of the most promising changes is that inclusive growth has become a household word and a unifying call across the region. Recent shocks like the pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine, as well as global trends like climate change and automation have compounded these vulnerabilities.

“We at the IMF are a long-standing partner to countries in the MENA region in the quest for more inclusive and resilient growth.”

“Macroeconomic stability will be an essential foundation for transformative change. High levels of public debt in a number of MENA economies leave them vulnerable to future shocks. Rebuilding fiscal buffers may require redesigning tax systems to widen tax bases, improve the progressivity of taxation, and reduce distortions that lead to informality.

“These principles will form the basis of the IMF’s engagement with MENA policymakers and other stakeholders for the years to come. Structural reforms take time. By working together, we can tackle old and new challenges and build a future for the region grounded in a more sustainable and inclusive model of development.”

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