Since the onset of the pandemic, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has provided $18 billion in financing to Middle Eastern (ME) and Central Asian countries, with emergency financing and program augmentations to 13 countries reaching $15 billion.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, specifically, is currently expected to suffer a 5% decline in growth during the current year, according to the IMF. While the economic slowdown is largely due to the pandemic, the crisis has brought to the forefront the region’s myriad other vulnerabilities including high dependence on only oil, remittances, and intangible services.

To get a deeper view of the region’s recovery, Arab Finance interviewed Jihad Azour, IMF director of the ME and Central Asia regions.