Departmental Papers

State-Owned Enterprises in Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia: Size, Costs, and Challenges

ByErnesto Ramirez Rigo, Christine J. Richmond, Oluremi Akin Olugbade, Gareth Anderson, Maria Atamanchuk, Hatim Bukhari, Iacovos Ioannou, Deeksha Kale, Tannous Kass-Hanna, Maximilien Queyranne, Wei Shi, Joyce Wong

September 20, 2021

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Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, Christine J. Richmond, Oluremi Akin Olugbade, Gareth Anderson, Maria Atamanchuk, Hatim Bukhari, Iacovos Ioannou, Deeksha Kale, Tannous Kass-Hanna, Maximilien Queyranne, Wei Shi, and Joyce Wong. "State-Owned Enterprises in Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia: Size, Costs, and Challenges", Departmental Papers 2021, 019 (2021), accessed 12/4/2025, https://doi.org/10.5089/9781513594088.087

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Disclaimer: The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.

Summary

Prior to the COVID-19 shock, the key challenge facing policymakers in the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia region was how to generate strong, sustainable, job-rich, inclusive growth. Post-COVID-19, this challenge has only grown given the additional reduction in fiscal space due to the crisis and the increased need to support the recovery. The sizable state-owned enterprise (SOE) footprint in the region, together with its cost to the government, call for revisiting the SOE sector to help open fiscal space and look for growth opportunities.

Subject: Corporate governance, COVID-19, Economic sectors, Fiscal policy, Fiscal risks, Health, Political economy, Public enterprises, Public financial management (PFM), Public sector

Keywords: Central Asia, corporate governance, COVID-19, fiscal risks, Global, government support, Middle East, Middle East and Central Asia, North Africa, Public enterprises, Public sector, SOE definition, SOE footprint, SOE governance, SOE mandate, SOE sector, State-owned enterprises

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