TABLE 1 Perceptions of changes in political, economic, and social conditions in MENA countries, annual averages between 2012 and 2013 or 2014
(1) LAW & ORDER
MENA COUNTRIES Low and middle income countries
Egypt (2014) Iraq (2014)* Jordan (2014)
Lebanon (2014) Mauritania (2013) Morocco (2013) Palestine (2014)* Syria (2013) Tunisia (2013) Yemen (2014)*
High income countries Bahrain (2013) Kuwait (2013) Saudi Arabia (2014) UAE (2014)
NON-MENA COUNTRIES Low and middle income countries High income countries
Source: Authors’ representation based on data from Gallup Analytics (accessed October 10, 2014,
www.gallup.com/products/170987/gal- lup-analytics.aspx).
Note: *Survey was conducted before the recent conflicts. The reported indicator changes measure the percentage point changes in the response rates to the perception-based questions on (1) “feeling safe walking alone,” (2) “economic conditions in the country,” and (3)
“not enough money for food” as well as in (4) Gallup’s (un)employment index. †No significant change (falls within the standard survey error range of 1–3). All numbers are rounded.
(2) NATIONAL ECONOMY
(3) EMPLOYMENT
(4) FOOD SECURITY
Percent change
≥11 6–10 4–5 1–3† No change Improved Worsened
Fuel subsidy reduction reforms are oſten viewed
as a “triple win” policy: they tend to bring down unsustainably high budget deficits, increase public investments, and improve private investors’ confi- dence. In a drastic move, on July 4, 2014 the Egyp- tian government increased prices for different types of fuel between 40 and 78 percent, saving an esti- mated 44 billion Egyptian pounds (US$6.14 bil- lion).5 In September 2013, Morocco partially indexed its energy prices to the international market price, and in January 2014, it removed all the subsi- dies on petrol and fuel oil and also significantly cut diesel subsidies.6 In late 2013, Sudan introduced fuel
subsidy cuts, and the prices of fuel and its derivatives increased between 68 and 75 percent.7 In July 2014, Yemen increased the prices of gasoline and diesel by 60 and 95 percent, respectively, in an atempt to reduce its unsustainable fiscal burden. Public outcry resulting from these reforms varied from nonexis- tent or minimal in some countries, such as Morocco and Egypt, to violent riots in others, including Sudan. At the extreme end of the spectrum is Yemen, where these reforms likely exacerbated the ongoing civil conflict. In the face of continuously rising food imports, governments have continued to emphasize the
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA 79
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