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This paper seeks to investigate the causal links between remittances, economic freedom, and economic growth on a panel of four North African countries, namely, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, and Egypt from 1980 to 2012. Using the system generalized method of moments (GMM) in a panel data analysis, we found strong evidence of a positive relationship between remittances and economic growth. We also found that economic freedom appears to be working as a complement to remittances and, that the effect of remittances is more pronounced in the presence of the economic freedom variable. Thus, to the extent that remittances have become a major source of external development finance, policies promoting greater freedom of economic activities benefit more from the presence of remittances.

This article investigates the causal interactions between foreign direct investment (FDI), economic freedom and economic growth on a panel of four North African countries (Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and Egypt), over a 5-year period from 1980 to 2013. Using the System Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) in a panel data analysis, we found strong evidence of a positive link between FDI and economic growth. We also found that economic freedom appears to be working as a complement to FDI and that the effect of FDI is more pronounced in the presence of the economic freedom variable. This means that the countries which promote greater freedom of economic activities benefit more from the presence of multinational corporations (MNCs).

This paper estimates the forward-looking monetary policy reaction function of the Central Bank of Tunisia (CBT) using quarterly data from 1993:Q2 to 2011:Q4. Policies which the CBT applied are analyzed according to the Taylor rule. The empirical results indicate that the CBT followed the Taylor rule in its interest setting behaviour. In forward-looking models, the response coefficient of expected inflation is greater than of the output gap, which is consistent with the fact that inflation is the primary objective of monetary policy. The results of forward-looking models reflect the policies conducted in Tunisia .

This contribution investigates the causal interactions between foreign direct investment (FDI), economic freedom and economic growth in a panel of 4 countries of North Africa (Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and Egypt) over the period 1980 - 2012. Using System Generalized Method of Moment (GMM) panel data analysis, we find strong evidence of a positive link between FDI and economic growth. We also find evidence that economic freedom appear to be working as a complement to FDI and, moreover, that the effect of FDI is more pronounced in the presence of the economic freedom variable. This means the countries promote greater freedom of economic activities gain significantly from the presence of multinational corporations (MNCs).

This paper examines the empirical relationship between economic growth and income inequality for 4 countries of North Africa (Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt) over the period 1970-2007. The results of this paper indicate that the long-run growth elasticity of income inequality is negative and signifi cant implying that keeping other factors constant; more income inequality reduces economic growth. Moreover, this paper fi nds evidence that more physical and human capital investment and higher openness to trade have statistically signifi cant impact on enhancing economic growth and reducing poverty.

It has long been recognized in academic and policy debates that domestic policies play an important role in explaining economic growth. The paper investigates the role of real exchange rate (RER) misalignment on long-run growth in three countries of the Maghreb countries (Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco) over the period 1980-2008. We fi rst estimate equilibrium RER relying on the Fundamental Equilibrium Exchange Rate (FEER) approach, from which misalignment is derived. Second, we estimate a dynamic panel growth model in which among the traditional determinants of growth, our measure of misalignment is included. The results indicate that the coeffi cient for RER misalignment is negative, which means that a more depreciated (appreciated) RER helps (harms) long-run growth. As a consequence, an appropriate exchange rate policy would close the gap between RER and its equilibrium level.