From Oil Rents to Inclusive Growth: Lessons from the MENA Region

A copious literature on resource curse correlates oil rents with poor economic outcomes in resource-rich economies. The common yardstick for evaluating economic performance in these countries is generally GDP growth rates. This paper focuses on the broader question of whether the oil-exporters in the MENA region in general and in the GCC states in particular have been successful in turning their hydrocarbon wealth for the benefit of their population at large. To find out if their experience has been conducive to 'inclusive growth', we compute a novel Inclusive Growth Index and its associated rankings for 154 countries to shed light on their performance both over time and in a comparative context. The results show a marked deterioration in the case of MENA’s oil-exporting countries over the period 2001-5 and 2006-10 particularly marred by a poor record in job creation, especially for their young population.