BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 16. Economic growth in MENA is projected to slow to 1.4% in 2026, affected by the Middle East conflict, said Jihad Azour, Director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia Department, at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) media roundtable, Trend reports.
"Prior to the conflict, the MENA region was one of the most promising. Growth gaining traction, inflation easing, and the non-oil sector performing well. That progress has been sharply reversed. Even under our reference scenario, growth in MNA is projected to slow to 1.4% in 2026, which constitutes a downgrade revision of 2.3 percentage points from our October forecast," he emphasized.
According to Azour, the impact is highly uneven across countries in the region.
"Among conflict-affected oil exporters, five of eight economies are now projected to contract in 2026. These economies face higher energy costs, weaker remittances, and tighter financial conditions at a time where their buffers were already limited," he said.
Azour added that low-income and fragile states face the most severe pressures, including rising food prices and worsening financial conditions.