Sousse attack risks authoritarian return in Tunisia

Significance The administration also deployed more police to tourist resorts and promised to close Salafi mosques and to curb some religious associations. At least one religious political party may be closed, but there are concerns about a return to authoritarian policies. Impacts There will be damage to the wider economy, well beyond the already troubled tourism sector. The government will try to limit radicalisation with authoritarian-style policies, but this is unlikely to work in the short term. Popular mistrust of the government, already significant, will grow.

Significance This is an early move back towards elected politics following the mid-2014 military coup, and comes as recent corruption allegations, the possibility of a fifth cabinet reshuffle and concerns about the outlook for Thailand’s labour market are raising new questions about the NCPO government’s competence. This also comes as Thailand looks to a general election by November 2018 for which the NCPO may form a political party. Impacts Inadequacies in collecting biometric data for fisheries workers could draw renewed EU scrutiny and criticism. A cabinet reshuffle will not slow Thailand’s recent gains in economic growth. Media self-censorship means corruption allegations will likely not have a great negative impact on the government. Investor confidence is unlikely to be affected by corruption allegations in the short term.


Significance In August, it asked the IMF for a USD1.75bn credit under the Extended Fund Facility. This will come on top of the USD504mn approved by the IMF for emergency financial assistance in May. Costa Rica's problems stem from a combination of long-term weaknesses and the short-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Impacts The tourism sector will be slow to recover, further hurting the economy and the fiscal position. Insufficient support for the informal sector will leave much of the country’s workforce struggling. Poverty will probably increase as the government struggles to expand social programmes to protect low-income households.


Significance Belize’s economic slowdown is proving prolonged, driven by the sharp drop in tourist arrivals as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The government has reduced spending and announced an austerity budget for 2021-22. Tourism looks likely to pick up somewhat this year, but high public debt and unemployment will weigh on economic activity into 2022. Impacts Failure to agree a debt restructuring could force Belize to seek an IMF loan. Protracted debt negotiations will deter investment in the short term. Ongoing vaccine uptake in the United States will be crucial for Belize’s tourism sector, as it is the main tourism source country.


Significance Many areas of the Caribbean have trade, investment and family connections with communities in Florida. As the state now plays a pivotal role in US electoral politics, crises in the region can take on added political importance for parts of Florida’s electorate. Impacts Forecasts of short-term economic recovery for Florida remain highly uncertain given the continuing impact of the pandemic. Clashing interests across the Caribbean may demand greater coordination of US policy than the government can currently offer. Healthcare and disaster relief capabilities within the state are severely overstretched and could be overwhelmed by a new crisis.


Significance The government hopes greater domestic and foreign investment can help turn around the pandemic-hit economy. The governor of Bank Indonesia (BI), the central bank, last week said GDP should grow by 4.6% in 2021, compared with last year’s 2.1% contraction. Impacts Indonesia will count on private vaccination, whereby companies buy state-procured jabs for their staff, to help speed up its roll-out. The Indonesia Investment Authority, a new sovereign wealth fund, will prioritise attracting more investment into the infrastructure sector. Singapore will continue to be Indonesia’s largest source of FDI in the short term.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Medha Pirthee

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the trend and forecast the number of tourists from different regions of the world to Mauritius. Design/methodology/approach The paper adopts two grey system models, the even model GM(1,1) and the non-homogeneous discrete grey model (NDGM), to forecast the total number of international tourism to Mauritius and its structure from different regions tourist arrivals to Mauritius for the next three years. Grey system theory models were used to account for uncertainties and the dynamism of the tourism sector environment. The two models were applied as a comparison to obtain more reliable forecasting figures. Findings The results demonstrate that both of the grey system models can be successfully applied with high accuracy for Mauritian tourism prediction, and also the number of tourist arrivals to Mauritius shows a continued augmentation for the upcoming years. Practical implications Forecasting is meaningful since the Government of Mauritius, private companies or any concerned authority can adopt the forecasting methods exposed in this paper for the development of the tourism sector through managerial and economic decision making. Originality/value Mauritius is a charming travel destination. Through this paper, it can be seen that future tourism travel to Mauritius has been successfully predicted based on previous data. Moreover, it seems that the grey system theory models have not been utilised yet as forecasting tools for the tourism sector of Mauritius as opposed to other countries such as China and Taiwan.


Subject Pakistan's divestment drive. Significance Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government describes divestment of public sector enterprises (PSEs), involving 69 firms, as an essential part of its 2013-18 economic reform agenda. Progress thus far is limited, but the government faces rising pressure from the IMF, which made divestment a core condition of its 6.6-billion-dollar, three-year loan in September 2013. Impacts Another government led by Sharif would continue gradual divestments after 2018. Since PSEs are an important vector for distributing political patronage, structural reforms will face stiff resistance. Divestment of profitable PSEs defeats the purpose of the exercise, but the government will use them for a short-term cash boost.


Subject The risk that the Brazilian economy will stagnate, rather than recover, this year. Significance The recent passage of legislation freezing government spending and the ambitious pension reform currently under discussion in Congress are the flagship policies of the government of President Michel Temer. Both seek to defuse Brazil’s fiscal time bomb in the long term. However, they offer little support to immediate expansion in an economy that not only has been in recession since the second quarter of 2014 but is also locked in a low-growth trap will few apparent short-term escape routes. Impacts Popular dissatisfaction may trigger a new wave of demonstrations, further weakening the government. As long as the fiscal crisis persists, the government’s ability to stimulate the economy will be limited. Political risk will be a crucial factor in business investment decisions in Brazil.


Significance For over a month, Jammeh rebuffed diplomatic efforts by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to accept Adama Barrow's victory in the December 1 presidential poll. An ECOWAS military intervention into The Gambia -- accompanied by last-minute diplomatic efforts and purported financial and security guarantees -- finally forced Jammeh to accept defeat. Impacts A truth commission offering amnesty for military officials and the outgoing government could prompt discord within the new ruling alliance. Military restructuring will be a priority for Barrow's government. International assistance will likely flow in support of the new president. The Gambia's tourism sector -- which makes up nearly 20% of the country's GDP -- will struggle to recover in the short-term. The ECOWAS intervention could prove unpopular among members' domestic constituencies if a lengthy, costly mission emerges.


Subject The government's latest GDP expectations for 2016-19. Significance On September 19, days before surviving a parliamentary no-confidence vote, the government announced GDP projections for 2016-19, based on improvements in consumption growth and the labour market, where registered unemployment hovers at historically low levels. Despite its weakened position following the recent departure of junior coalition partner Siet, Smer-Social Democracy (SD) is upbeat about the prospects for robust GDP growth in 2016, revising its forecast upwards to 3.6% from 3.2%. Impacts Industrial output, GDP and inflationary pressures may pick up post-2018, as consumers spend more and auto industry investments create jobs. The government may miss its targets in the short term, but fiscal deficits should remain below the EU limit of 3% of GDP in 2016-18. More public-private partnerships, modelled on the Bratislava ring-road, plus EU funding, may support infrastructure investment after 2017.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document