Market Structure and Bank Conduct in the MENA Region

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Awdeh ◽  
Chawki El Moussawi ◽  
Hassan Hamadi
Keyword(s):  
Market Structure ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Gulf Cooperation Council ◽  
Market Concentration ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Industrial Economics ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Banking Markets ◽  
Pricing Power ◽  
Market Structure And Pricing

Abstract The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region is witnessing a wave of bank consolidations, with many mega-mergers taking place in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. These will result in creating large banks, reducing the number of market players and increasing market concentration; which is already high. A further increase in concentration may raise concerns about the resulting dominance of large banks and the consequences on their pricing behaviour. The interrelationships between market structure and pricing behaviour is summarised by the popular model of industrial economics called the structure–conduct–performance (SCP) model. Consequently, we test the prevalence of this model in a sample of 15 MENA banking sectors to detect the possible existence of an impact running particularly from the structure of banking markets to the pricing behaviour (power) of banks in order to predict a possible emergence of oligopolistic behaviour following bank consolidations. Using a two-stage least squares model, we found a positive and significant impact of market concentration on bank pricing, suggesting that an further increase in MENA banking markets’ concentration may boost banks pricing power and persuade them to increase their returns at the expense of their customers.

scholarly journals Father Involvement and Education in the GCC

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Life History ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Father Involvement ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Gulf Cooperation Council ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Education Environment

This policy brief builds on a larger father involvement study that encompasses 10 countries in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region to identify some of the key challenges of father involvement in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Using mixed methods with a modified Fatherhood Scale survey and life history interviews, the study found notable differences in father involvement in education across geographic, gender, and generational factors. Overall, fathers in GCC countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) tend to be perceived as more encouraging of their children’s education, especially for their daughters, but are less engaged in the types of quality involvement that are key to educational achievement. Based on the findings of this study, this policy brief highlights some of the key challenges of GCC fathers’ involvement. We conclude by offering recommendations to create and support an education environment in the GCC that values quality father involvement.

Father Involvement and Education in the GCC

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natasha Ridge ◽  
Sarah Han ◽  
David Dingus
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Life History ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Father Involvement ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Gulf Cooperation Council ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Education Environment

This policy brief builds on a larger father involvement study that encompasses 10 countries in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region to identify some of the key challenges of father involvement in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Using mixed methods with a modified Fatherhood Scale survey and life history interviews, the study found notable differences in father involvement in education across geographic, gender, and generational factors. Overall, fathers in GCC countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates) tend to be perceived as more encouraging of their children’s education, especially for their daughters, but are less engaged in the types of quality involvement that are key to educational achievement. Based on the findings of this study, this policy brief highlights some of the key challenges of GCC fathers’ involvement. We conclude by offering recommendations to create and support an education environment in the GCC that values quality father involvement.

New insight into market concentration and competition: Use of Barnett’s variable profit function to measure market structure in banking

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Fatima Hasan
Keyword(s):  
Market Structure ◽  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Economic Model ◽  
Market Concentration ◽  
Profit Function ◽  
Banking Markets ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Underlying Variable

Previous research on market concentration in banking is heavily tilted towards using deposits as the underlying variable for measuring market concentration. This paper proposes a change in methodology by replacing deposits with the Variable profit function based on Barnett and Hahm’s Economic model for Financial Institutions, used in their 1994 paper. This model has also been successfully used in Dr. William A. Barnett’s successive research. Hancock 1997 also proposes using a similar methodology for modelling banks as Economic firms. Results change dramatically once deposits are substituted by variable profits, and a confounding puzzle is solved, involving one of South Asia’s thriving banking markets.

Attitudes of Students in the GCC Region towards the Arab Spring

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Naufal ◽  
Ismail Genc ◽  
Carlos Vargas-Silva
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
South Asia ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
The Arab Spring

The purpose of this chapter is to present new empirical research on the Arab Spring and, specifically, to focus on the attitudes of residents of one country in the Middle East towards the Arab Spring. This research was conducted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has been one of the main migrant destinations in the world for the last two decades. This allows for comparisons regarding attitudes towards the Arab Spring across individuals from different regions of origin such as GCC, South Asia, and Western countries. The attitudes of university students are important because the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has experienced a substantial increase in the 17 to 23 years of age population. Existing reports suggest that, by far, those involved in Arab Spring protests were young individuals. The analysis places particular emphasis on the correlation of attitudes towards the Arab Spring with three key aspects: religiousness, attachment to the GCC countries, and attachment to country of origin.

scholarly journals CUSTOMERS’ DEPOSIT BEHAVIOUR IN DUAL BANKING INDUSTRY: A MARKET STRUCTURE ANALYSIS

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 356-377
Author(s):  
Nafisah Mohammed ◽  
Azmafazilah Jauhari ◽  
Nadzirah Mohammed
Keyword(s):  
Market Structure ◽  
Structure Analysis ◽  
Concentration Ratio ◽  
Banking Industry ◽  
Market Concentration ◽  
Islamic Banking ◽  
Market Structure Analysis ◽  
Banking Markets ◽  
Conventional Banks ◽  
Structure Perception

Background and Purpose: The aim of this paper is to evaluate public acceptance toward Islamic banking system in Malaysia by using the market structure analysis as proposed in industrial organizational studies. The structural approach framework was used to evaluate the nature and changes of market concentration in the Malaysian Islamic and conventional deposit markets.   Methodology: The well-known market concentration measure, namely concentration ratio (CR) is calculated to study the changes in saving behaviour among depositors in both banking markets. The concentration ratios of deposits for both banking markets are evaluated by using the banking firms’ level data for the period 1997–2016. Pearson and Spearman correlation analysis was also used to investigate the relationship between the total deposits and bank-specific variables.   Findings: It is found that interest or profit rate paid to the depositors are the factor that greatly affect the depositors’ choice of banks to save their money. Besides, experience doing businesses is more important to Islamic banks compared to conventional banks in order to attract depositors.   Contributions: The findings demonstrate that societies, especially the Islamic community, are still loyal to conventional banks, which have more experience in the banking operation. The findings of this study are expected to open the eyes of the Muslim community to use Islamic banking services, which are certainly sharia-compliance.   Keywords: Concentration ratio, deposit, dual banking, market structure, perception.   Cite as: Mohammed, N., Jauhari, A., & Mohammed, N. (2020). Customers’ deposit behaviour in dual banking industry: A market structure analysis. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 5(1), 356-377. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol5iss1pp356-377

Transitions Within Queer North African Cinema

Screen Bodies ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 64-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter S. Temple
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Film Festivals ◽  
Global Awareness ◽  
Critical Factors ◽  
North African ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
African Cinema ◽  
Queer Cinema

In recent years, North African queer cinema has become increasingly visible both within and beyond Arabo-Orientale spaces. A number of critical factors have contributed to a global awareness of queer identities in contemporary Maghrebi cinema, including the dissemination of films through social media outlets and during international film festivals. Such tout contemporain representations of queer sexuality characterize a robust wave of films in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, inciting a new discourse on the condition of the marginalized traveler struggling to locate new forms of self and being—both at home and abroad.

scholarly journals Influence of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors in the Middle East and North Africa Region: a survey of 5896 individuals

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Abouzid ◽  
◽  
Dina M. El-Sherif ◽  
Nael Kamel Eltewacy ◽  
Nesrine Ben Hadj Dahman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Food Consumption ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Lifestyle Behaviors ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has affected health and lifestyle behaviors of people globally. This project aims to identify the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle behavior of individuals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region during confinement. Methods We conducted an online survey in 17 countries (Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Yemen, Syria, Palestine, Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Iraq, and Sudan) from the MENA region on August and September 2020. The questionnaire included self-reported information on lifestyle behaviors, including physical activity, eating habits, smoking, watching television, social media use and sleep before and during the pandemic. Logistic regression was performed to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on lifestyle behaviors. Results A total of 5896 participants were included in the final analysis and 62.8% were females. The BMI of the participants was 25.4 ± 5.8 kg/m2. Around 38.4% of the participants stopped practicing any physical activities during the confinement (P < 0.001), and 57.1% reported spending more than 2 h on social media (P < 0.001). There were no significant changes in smoking habits. Also, 30.9% reported an improvement in their eating habits compared with 24.8% reported worsening of their eating habits. Fast-food consumption decreased significantly in 48.8% of the study population. This direct/indirect exposure to COVID-19 was associated with an increased consumption of carbohydrates (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.02–1.17; P = 0.01), egg (OR = 1.08; 95% CI = 1.02–1.16; P = 0.01), sugar (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.02–1.16; P = 0.02), meat, and poultry (OR = 1.13; 95% CI = 1.06–1.20; P < 0.01). There was also associated increase in hours spent on watching television (OR = 1.07; 95% CI = 1.02–1.12; P < 0.01) and social media (OR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.01–1.18; P = 0.03). However, our results showed a reduction in sleeping hours among those exposed to COVID-19 infection (OR = 0.85; 95% CI = 0.77–0.94; P < 0.01). Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increase in food consumption and sedentary life. Being exposed to COVID-19 by direct infection or through an infected household is a significant predictor of amplifying these changes. Public health interventions are needed to address healthy lifestyle behaviors during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Party systems and ideological cleavages in the Middle East and North Africa

2020 ◽  
pp. 135406881989429
Author(s):  
Abdullah Aydogan
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Party Competition ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Mena Countries

Previous studies have contrasted the political party systems in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) with those in more democratic countries, raising three important points: (1) the religious–secular dimension, rather than the economic or social left–right, explains the underlying political party competition; (2) left-wing politics is relatively weaker than right-wing politics; and (3) parties that are traditionally known as rightist take left-leaning positions on numerous issue dimensions, and vice versa. Even though this particular literature on party politics in the MENA has greatly improved our understanding of political dynamics in the region, these studies have either lacked quantitative evidence to support these points or their evidence was limited to single-country cases. This study aims to address this issue by analyzing original expert survey data of the ideological positions of political parties in the MENA region. Results show that in addition to the religious–secular dimension, the economic left–right divide and the pace of political reforms are highly important dimensions. The study also provides numerous examples showing that the policy stances of leftist and rightist parties are significantly reversed when MENA countries are compared with more developed democracies.

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