This paper aims to study the impact of both bank performance and economic growth on bank profitability in 8 middle-income countries from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and MINT countries using the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) model. Bank profitability is measured by return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE), net interest margin (NIM) is measured by CAMEL model, and economic growth is measured by gross domestic product (GDP) growth. The sample period ranges from 2000 to 2020, and data are extracted from the World Bank financial indicators and database. This paper is supported by the financial intermediation theory. By comparing both MINT and MENA regions, the results show that in the MINT region, ROA is affected most by both asset management and capital adequacy ratio (CAR), while NIM is affected by asset management, liquidity, and management. Regarding the MENA region, ROA and NIM are affected by CAR only. No relationship was found between ROE and any of the CAMEL determinants in both regions. The results show superior performance for MINT than MENA; strong and active capital, increment in assets, credits, and deposits, and enhancement in bank profitability that is reflected in economic growth progress. Both MENA and MINT regions’ profitability (ROA and ROE) is affected by GDP, so their economies are restructuring very well and their banking industries are expected to grow rapidly.

This study investigates the influences of financial performance and economic determinants (inflation rate and economic growth) on financial distress (FD) in the MENA region in the context of the contagion effect theory and Minsky’s financial instability theory. This paper examines the determinants of financial distress in the MENA region from 2002 until 2020 using pooled OLS, fixed effect, and GMM panel estimation models; then the results are used to estimate the effect over the long run. The results show that the things that cause financial distress are changing a lot between countries in the MENA region. This shows how important it is to separate the effects of economic and financial factors. The results show the significance of economic growth, ROA, ROE, inflation, and stock market profitability using fixed effects. The results changed when we used GMM, concluding that economic growth, ROA, ROE, and stock market profitability were significant, while inflation was not significant. Therefore, there is a significant and negative relationship between financial distress and economic growth in GCC-MENA as well as other MENA countries. Our results can be of importance to investors and regulators. The introduction of a more stable political environment and engagement in international economic and financial markets will decrease the negative impacts of financial distress and boost economic growth and its sustainability in the MENA region.

This study examines the factors that influence the blue economy in EUROMED, aiming at promoting economic growth in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. EUROMED was chosen because all of its nations have fisheries and marine tourism, which are the two key indicators of the blue economy. Blue economy contributes to sustainable development in the fisheries and marine tourism sectors. A commitment to sustainability has sped up national and regional blue economy policy development. The study uses secondary qualitative data and literature review to analyse the synergies and conflicts between EUROMED blue economy strategies and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The findings suggest that GDP growth, aqua production, open trade, CO2 emissions, and inflation rate influence the blue economy, and that ecotourism that considers education, society, and the environment may generate sustainable fisheries and marine tourism. Only 21 countries gave the ARDL test between 2000 and 2019. This study analyses synergies and conflicts between EUROMED blue economy strategies and UN Sustainable Development Goals. Location-based contextual development of blue economies that suit all players' requirements is essential to maintain sustainability objectives. Ensure resilience against future environmental and political shocks, preserve the ecological underpinning for vibrant blue economies, and create capacity at all levels to promote effective and fair governance. This study tries to make good use of ocean conservation and aquaculture within the context of the blue economy. This is the first EUROMED blue economy study and contributes to the theoretical and methodological development of blue economy research.

Although the movement of people from rural to urban areas has caused the increased use of energy, the abundance of water resources can be made into a form of renewable energy known as hydroelectricity. As European countries are ranked as the first users and exporters of hydropower, the production of renewable energy in developed countries such as the Nordic region has caused great impacts on economic growth and human development. The importance of this paper is to investigate the relationship between hydroelectricity and the Human Development Index by depending on some variables such as urbanization, rule of law, corruption, trade openness, and GDP per capita from 2002 to 2021 in Nordic countries. The results were estimated depending on impulse response function after conducting the Vector autoregressive model (VAR) model and Granger causality test. Results showed a negative impact from hydro plants in the short run but a significant positive impact in the long run in Nordic countries. The long-term sustainment of Human Development Index (HDI) is due to policies limiting the immigration of labor as well as protection of energy use. Water batteries are gaining popularity across Europe and their implementation is near mandatory.

تهدف هذه الدراسة الى دراسة أثر الشمول المالى على القطاع المصرفى ومن ثم النمو الإقتصادى فى مصر فى الفترة من 2014 حتى 2019 من خلال استخدام ماكينات الصراف الآلى لكل 1000 فرد، القروض لكل 1000 فرد، وعدد البنوك التجارية لكل 1000 فرد كمقاييس للشمول المالى واستخدم العائد على حقوق المساهمين، العائد على الأصول كمقاييس لربحيه البنوك واستخدام الناتج المحلى الاجمالى كمقياس للنمو الاقتصادى. واعتمدت الباحثتان على تحليل كمى إحصائى باستخدام برنامج Stata لتحليل متغيرات تم اشتقاقها من البنك الدولى والبنك المركزى المصرى وصندوق النقد الدولي. وانتهت الدراسة إلى أن استخدام ماكينات الصراف الآلى لكل 1000 فرد، القروض لكل 1000 فرد ذات دلالة معنوية ايجابية فى النموذجين الاول والثانى فيما يتعلق بالعائد على حقوق المساهمين، العائد على الأصول بينما عدد البنوك التجارية لكل 1000 فرد ذات دلالة معنوية سلبيه على ربحية البنوك. كما توصلت الدراسة الى ان جميع مقاييس الشمول المالى المستخدمة ذات دلالة معنوية ايجابية على الناتج المحلى الاجمالى . This study examines the impact of financial inclusion on banks` profitability measured by ATMs numbers per 1000 adults, loans per 1000 adults, number of commercial banks per 1000 adults, and the economic growth in Egypt depending on GDP. The researchers depend on a quantitative approach that uses the variables that affect the bank's profitability and economic growth. The data for this study were manually obtained from the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) annual reports, the World Development Indicators (WDI), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) yearly reports. The banking industry in Egypt was included in the study's population. The analysis covers the years 2014 to 2019. The findings support that Loan accounts and...

Water scarcity is an important threat to food security in the Euphrates–Tigris river. Water scarcity is a huge worldwide problem that results from the rapid increase in water demand, which exceeds the amount of available water. The most significant problems currently affecting countries are food insecurity water scarcity. The Euphrates–Tigris river countries suffer from different political issues, such as the Syrian war and internal civil conflicts in Iraq. In addition, this area consists of only three countries: Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, but it affects the entire Middle East. Turkey has established many irrigation projects compared to Iraq, which still suffers from the previous American invasion. Therefore, this study examines the Euphrates–Tigris river (using two countries) to examine the relationship between water scarcity and food security from 1992 to 2020. This study will be conducted using a fixed and random regression approach over 18 years. The results show a negative relationship between water scarcity and food security in the short run, at a 10% significance level, and a long-term positive relationship of 1%. Thus, the use of research and development and the encouragement of investments will help policymakers to develop a nexus between water scarcity and food security.