Construction – and infrastructure development in particular – is expected to be a key driver of economic growth across ASEAN from 2021. The bloc, home to some of the world’s fastest-growing economies and lowest unemployment rates, faced the novel coronavirus after years of health care infrastructure improvements, with much of the group reporting Covid-19 case-fatality rates below the global…
Although the Philippines has experienced some of Asia’s most stringent coronavirus containment measures and registered one of the highest case counts in the region, it has also maintained a fatality rate below the global average. As policymakers cautiously ease restrictions in an effort to boost economic activity, this report looks at the opportunities for digitalisation and outsourcing that are…
Alongside rising GDP and manageable public debt levels, Indonesia’s banks maintained robust performance in the six months leading to the pandemic. Monetary measures by the central bank to address headwinds in 2020 included lowering the reverse repo rate and purchasing government debt. In spite of challenges, in the first three quarters of 2020 banks sustained a consistent financing-to-assets ratio,…
While Morocco already benefitted from relatively high internet and mobile penetration, the pandemic has accelerated digitalisation in the country thanks to the adoption of innovative solutions across a wide range of industries. In response to the crisis, Morocco’s public and private sectors put in place a number of innovative digital measures to secure economic output, increase productivity and…
Home to 60% of the world’s arable land, Africa has the potential to meet not only its own food needs, but also those of the rest of the world. Agriculture remains one of the most important economic sectors for the continent, employing the majority of the population and accounting for 14% of GDP in sub-Saharan Africa. The Agriculture in Africa 2021: Focus Report outlines the region’s export…
Although still largely reliant on hydrocarbons, Kuwait has a number of macroeconomic strengths that helped it withstand the most severe impacts of the pandemic, including high GDP per capita, a strong sovereign credit rating and a deep sovereign wealth fund. While research and development (R&D) expenditure and investment lags behind the global average, Kuwait is home to strong scientific and…
Bahasa Indonesia’s robust economic growth in the years leading up to the pandemic, combined with low public debt, provided the country with a stronger cushion than in previous global crises. A range of coordinated fiscal and monetary policy tools were deployed to help alleviate some of the biggest challenges and boost liquidity. This report outlines the measures taken by Indonesia’s multifinance…
In English …
Thailand’s past experiences in mitigating global and financial health crises – coupled with robust medical infrastructure, and the ingenuity and adaptability of businesses and the wider population – have combined to keep the Covid-19 transmission and fatality rate relatively low in the country so far. This latest report analyses the national response to the outbreak, with a particular focus…
In the past several years Egypt carried out an IMF-backed reform programme to address the country’s fiscal position and improve the business and investment environment. These changes helped position Egypt to respond effectively to the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, balancing the need to mitigate the spread of the virus with preserving the economic activity necessary to the livelihoods of…
