Rethinking MENA Integration in a Fast‑Changing Global Environment
DETAILS
Call for Papers – Rethinking MENA Integration in a Fast‑Changing Global Environment
Journal: Emerging Markets Review
Publisher: Elsevier
Journal metrics: Impact Factor 4.6, CiteScore 8.8
Submission window: 1 July 2026 – 31 August 2026
This special issue examines how Middle East and North Africa (MENA) economies can deepen trade and financial integration, strengthen resilience, and diversify sources of growth amid a rapidly changing global environment. It invites empirical and theoretical research on the impact of tariff and trade shocks, geoeconomic fragmentation, digitalisation, AI, energy and infrastructure investment, and regional financial cooperation on the region’s integration and development strategies.
Why this issue matters
The MENA region faces rising geoeconomic fragmentation, trade‑policy uncertainty, and macro‑financial volatility, which reshape cross‑border trade, investment, and regional value chains.
At the same time, digitalisation and AI diffusion are transforming productivity, labour markets, and the structure of trade and finance, while also raising risks of new forms of digital‑ and data‑based fragmentation.
Regional integration, energy and infrastructure development, and financial‑sector reforms are critical levers for risk‑sharing, diversification, and sustainable and inclusive growth in an uncertain global context.
Key themes and topic areas
Contributions should connect MENA‑specific dynamics with broader emerging‑market and global phenomena, and may adopt theoretical, empirical, or policy‑oriented approaches.
Trade integration, fragmentation, and regional value chains
Effects of tariff shocks, non‑tariff barriers, and geopolitical realignments on intra‑ and extra‑regional trade and investment.
The role of regional free‑trade agreements, customs unions, and supply‑chain resilience strategies in reshaping MENA value‑chain participation.
Macroeconomic and financial policy in an uncertain world
Macro‑financial policy responses to global financial‑conditions tightening, capital‑flow volatility, and exchange‑rate shocks in MENA countries.
Design of fiscal, monetary, and macroprudential frameworks to support external‑shock absorption and sustainable growth.
Digitalisation, AI, and economic integration
Impact of digital technologies and AI adoption on productivity, trade links, financial inclusion, and inequality in MENA economies.
Policy and institutional frameworks to attract AI‑related investment, build digital infrastructure, and avoid new forms of digital fragmentation.
Energy and infrastructure investment
Role of energy, digital‑network, and transport infrastructure in strengthening regional connectivity, trade, and diversification.
How rising electricity demand from AI‑driven data centres and digital‑intensive sectors can be met while supporting climate‑and‑sustainability objectives in the region.
Financial development and regional cooperation
Opportunities and challenges of fintech, cross‑border payment systems, and regional financial‑integration initiatives for risk‑sharing and financial deepening.
Regional arrangements that promote currency‑and‑payment‑union experimentation, bond‑market integration, and collaborative supervision.
Broader emerging‑market and global implications
Papers with a global or multi‑region focus are welcome if they generate clear, actionable insights for MENA‑specific integration and policy design.
Link to the 2026 IMF MENA Research Conference
This special issue is associated with the 2026 IMF MENA Research Conference, jointly organised by the International Monetary Fund and Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, to be held in Rabat, Morocco, 29–30 June 2026.
A selection of conference‑presented papers will be invited to submit to this Special Issue, subject to the journal’s standard peer‑review process.
Conference‑related submission guidelines and thematic details are available here:
https://www.imf.org/en/news/seminars/conferences/2026/06/29/2026-imf-mena-research-conference
Guest editors
Dr. Giovanni Melina, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Washington, DC, USA
Dr. Roberto Cardarelli, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Washington, DC, USA
Submission details
Submission portal: Elsevier Editorial Manager for Emerging Markets Review:
https://www.editorialmanager.com/EMEMAR/default.aspxWhen submitting, select article type: “VSI: MENA Integration – Rethink”.
Key dates:
Submission opening: 1 July 2026
Submission deadline: 31 August 2026
All manuscripts will undergo rigorous peer review in line with the journal’s standards.
Papers should clearly articulate how global and regional changes affect MENA trade and financial integration, and propose analytically grounded, policy‑relevant contributions on resilience, diversification, and sustainable growth.
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