The Economic and Political Determinants of IMF and World Bank Lending in the Middle East and North Africa

Abstract

MENA assumes both political and economic significance. Politically, it is arguably the epicentre of world crisis, chronically war-prone and the site of the world’s most protracted conflicts (Hinnebusch 2003 p.1); economically, it owns the bulk of the world’s oil reserves, driving in particular the USA economic engine. In light of the region’s geopolitically and economically strategic position in the world economy it is clear that economic and political factors are inextricably linked when it comes to the manner in which the West, particularly the USA, responds to the region’s needs.