The Covid-19 pandemic significantly impacted the Middle East and North Africa, exacerbating longstanding macroeconomic challenges such as high unemployment, inflation, supply chain disruptions, and economic inequality. As the region faced these intensified issues, the economic shock was felt acutely at both individual and household levels, varying from country to country. In response to these urgent needs, we recently convened a workshop in Istanbul focused on crafting effective strategies for post-pandemic economic recovery.
During the workshop, experts and policymakers gathered to discuss the critical areas that governments should prioritize in their recovery plans. The discussions centered around addressing pervasive issues such as poverty alleviation, combating inflation, and tackling labor market inequalities. These elements are crucial for ensuring a robust and equitable recovery across the region.
The insights from this workshop are essential for understanding how to navigate the complex economic landscape shaped by the pandemic. We invite you to listen to two of the workshop participants as they continue the conversation, providing valuable perspectives on how to effectively address these pressing challenges. Their contributions offer a deeper understanding of the strategies needed to foster sustainable economic growth and stability in the post-pandemic era.
Khalid Abu-Ismail is Senior Economist at United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). He leads the commission’s projects on poverty, inequality and human development and is the author of more than 50 technical papers and UN flagship publications on macroeconomic policies, inequality, conflict, employment and poverty, including the 2022 World Development Challenges Report. Khalid is a Policy Affiliate at the Middle East Economic Research Forum. He has a PhD in Development Economics from the New School for Social Research in New York.
Dr. Aysun Aygün is an assistant professor in the Department of Economics at Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ). She teaches labor economics, economics of education and health economics. Her research focuses on the evaluation of policies through empirical micro-economic studies, concentrating on women, children and refugees. In 2020, she was a researcher on a project sponsored by Tubitak (The Scientific and Technological Research Institution of to study the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on Turkish households. The project teams’ policy briefs received international and national recognition and had a media impact and was featured in media coverage including print and television.
