North Africa’s Economy
Social and labor unrest escalates in Tunisia as the government is running out of ideas
Over the past weekend, the Tunisian central government dismissed two senior provincial officials in the restive Tataouine province located in the southeast, near the Libyan border. In the capital, Prime Minister Chahed also fired his finance and education ministers,...
How the ban on electronics in US/UK bound flights serves two purposes: annoy travelers and reduce airline competition
The North Africa Journal - March 21, 2017: The US imposed a ban on most electronics on flights from Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE. The measure took effect on 21 March, after US authorities required airlines from said countries to...
Algeria: Major controversy over replacement of Sonatrach CEO
The North Africa Journal - March 20, 2017 - The CEO of the Algerian company Sonatrach is a very powerful man. Undoubtedly he has powers that exceed those of many ministers, and so appointing the right person should be no trivial exercise. Except that when politics...
How Egypt’s charm offensive abroad is in sharp contrast with its domestic politics
The North Africa Journal - March 8, 2017 - Egypt is working hard to fix its crumbling image abroad. Editorial after editorial, and article after article in the Western press have been critical of the Sisi government. Articles have been showing how the country...
Tunisia and Morocco looking for Africa markets for business and politics
The North Africa Journal: March 7, 2017- Two North African countries, Morocco and Tunisia, have been seeking membership into two regional economic groups in an effort to expand business opportunities and make fresh diplomatic gains. One of them has been accepted, the...
Labor Unions: Localized and segmented unions in North Africa seek better coordination
The North Africa Journal - Feb 21, 2017: Labor protests have been a major source of the heightened level of social unrest across the region. This past week saw its share of trade union unrest, largely driven by a labor sector that has regulations largely seen as...
Saudi Arabia-Tunisia: New honeymoon period in an uncharted territory
The North Africa Journal: Saudi Arabia is known for its efforts of pushing for its extreme Wahhabi agenda in North Africa and elsewhere. And after a brief intermission, Saudi Arabia is back in Tunisia, with the little help from its friends within the region. Saudi...
Outlook: Yet another cycle of uncertainty for the region
As the armed forces and security services manage to control, to a certain extent, the terror threat, the Greater North Africa region is facing unprecedented political tension, social stress and economic despair. Data for all countries in the North Africa zone,...
Instability in North Africa and Sahel claims over 8,500 deaths in 2016. MEA Risk expects 2017 to be another crisis year
Miami, FL – MEA Risk LLC - The North Africa and Sahel zone witnessed a 16.0% increase in the number of destabilizing critical incidents in 2016 to a total of 11,916, according to MEA Risk LLC. Despite such increase, MEA Risk’s Instability Index, measuring the crisis...
China to strengthen economic presence in Africa, seeks to widen political influence
January 2017: Last month, China flexed its muscles against Nigeria when the West African country agreed to upgrade the second-tier Taiwanese diplomatic mission based in Abuja to full embassy status. Beijing did not like the move and has been threatening Nigeria to...