Middle East and North Africa
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA)[1] or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA),[2][3] is a geographic region. While still referring to most of the Middle East (or West Asia without East Thrace or the Sinai peninsula) and North Africa together, it is widely considered to be a more defined and apolitical alternative to the grouping of countries that is known as the Greater Middle East, which comprises the bulk of the Muslim world.
As a regional identifier, the term "MENA" is often used in academia, military planning, disaster relief, media planning (as a broadcast region), and business writing.[4][5] Moreover, it shares a number of cultural, economic, and environmental similarities across the countries that it spans; for example, some of the most extreme impacts of climate change will be felt in MENA.
Some related terms have a wider definition than MENA, such as MENASA (lit. 'Middle East and North Africa and
Definitions
The Middle East and North Africa has no standardized definition; different organizations define the region as consisting of different territories, or do not define it as a region at all.
United Nations
There is no MENA region amongst the United Nations Regional Groups, nor in the United Nations geoscheme used by the UNSD (though the latter does feature two subregions called 'Western Asia' and 'Northern Africa', see WANA). Some agencies and programmes of the United Nations do define the MENA region, but their definitions may contradict each other, and sometimes only apply to specific studies or reports.
- A 2003 World Bank study stated: "In World Bank geographic classification, the following 21 countries or territories constitute the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates [UAE]), and 15 other countries or territories: Algeria, Djibouti, the Arab Republic of Egypt, Iraq, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Morocco, the Republic of Yemen, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, and West Bank and Gaza."[8]: 20 As of January 2021,[update] the World Bank website groups the same set of 21 countries/territories as MENA: "Algeria; Bahrain; Djibouti; Egypt, Arab Rep.; Iran, Islamic Rep.; Iraq; Israel; Jordan; Kuwait; Lebanon; Libya; Malta; Morocco; Oman; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Syrian Arab Republic; Tunisia; United Arab Emirates; West Bank and Gaza; Yemen, Rep..".[9]
- A 2010 UNHCR report stated: "For the purposes of this study, the MENA region has been defined as comprising of [sic] the following 18 countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen."[12]: 2
- A 2015 FAO report stated: "The 21 MENA countries are Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen."[13]
- The UNAIDS regional classification of the Middle East and North Africa region "includes 20 countries/territories: Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen", according to a 2019 UNICEF report.[10]: 11
- As of January 2021,[update] the UNICEF website groups the following set of 20 countries as MENA: "Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, State of Palestine, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen."[14]
- Working for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), economists Hamid Reza Davoodi and George T. Abed wrote in 2003: "The MENA region comprises the Arab States in the Middle East and North Africa—Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen—plus the Islamic State of Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan, the West Bank and Gaza." The authors emphasise that these "24 MENA countries (...) are grouped together for analytical purposes only." Although they allegedly "share common challenges and cultural links distinct from neighbouring economies" such as Israel and Turkey, and Islam is the dominant religion and Arabic the principal language, there are "sizable religious minority groups" and "significant linguistic diversities" in the MENA region, with Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan not having Arabic as the majority language.[11]
Country or territory |
World Bank MENA 2003[8][9] |
FAO MENA 2015[13] |
UNAIDS MENA 2019[10] |
UNICEF MENA 2021[14] |
UNHCR MENA 2010[12] |
IMF MENA 2003[11] |
UNSD WA+NA[15] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No |
Algeria | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Armenia | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
Azerbaijan | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
Bahrain | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Cyprus | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
Djibouti | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Egypt | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Georgia | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
Iran | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Iraq | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Israel | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes |
Jordan | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Kuwait | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Lebanon | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Libya | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Malta | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
Mauritania | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No |
Morocco | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Oman | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Pakistan | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No |
Palestine* | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Qatar | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Saudi Arabia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Somalia | No | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
Sudan | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
Syria | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Tunisia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Turkey | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
United Arab Emirates | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Western Sahara | Unclear | Unclear | Unclear | Unclear | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
Yemen | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
*Also called State of Palestine, (Occupied) Palestinian Territories, Palestinian Authority, or West Bank and Gaza (Strip). |
Other definitions
Historians Michael Dumper and Bruce Stanley stated in 2007: 'For the purposes of this volume, the editors have generally chosen to define the MENA region as stretching from Morocco to Iran and from Turkey to the Horn of Africa. This definition thus includes the twenty-two countries of the Arab League (including the Palestinian Authority enclaves in the West Bank and Gaza Strip), Turkey, Israel, Iran, and Cyprus.' They stressed, however, how controversial and problematic this definition is, and that other choices could also have been made according to various criteria.[16]
For its December 2012 global religion survey, the Pew Research Center grouped 20 countries and territories as 'the Middle East and North Africa', namely: 'Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, the Palestinian territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Western Sahara and Yemen.'[17]
For the
WANA
Due to the geographic ambiguity and
The United Nations geoscheme used by the UN Statistics Division for its specific political geography statistics needs, does not define a single WANA region, but it does feature two subregions called Western Asia and Northern Africa, respectively:[15]
- Western Asia (18): Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Cyprus, Georgia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, State of Palestine, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.
- Northern Africa (7): Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, Western Sahara.
In a 1995 publication, the then-Aleppo-based International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) defined its West Asia/North Africa (WANA) region as 25 countries, including: 'Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey and Yemen.'[23] It noted that CGIAR's Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) excluded Ethiopia, Sudan and Pakistan from its 1992 WANA definition, but otherwise listed the same countries.[23] In a 2011 study, ICARDA stated 27 countries/territories: 'The WANA region includes: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gaza Strip, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.'[22]
Country or territory |
CGIAR WANA 1992[23] |
ICARDA WANA 1995[23] |
ICARDA
WANA 2011[22] |
---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Algeria | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Armenia | No | No | No |
Azerbaijan | No | No | No |
Bahrain | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
Cyprus | No | No | No |
Djibouti | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
Egypt | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Eritrea | No | Probably | Yes |
Ethiopia | No | Yes | Yes |
Georgia | No | No | No |
Iran | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Iraq | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Israel | Unclear | Unclear | No |
Jordan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Kuwait | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Lebanon | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Libya | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mauritania | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
Morocco | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Oman | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Palestine* | Unclear | Unclear | Partial |
Pakistan | No | Yes | Yes |
Qatar | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Saudi Arabia | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Somalia | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
Sudan | No | Yes | Yes |
Syria | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Tunisia | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Turkey | Yes | Yes | Yes |
U.A.Emirates | Unclear | Unclear | Yes |
W. Sahara | Unclear | Unclear | Unclear |
Yemen | Yes | Yes | Yes |
*Also called State of Palestine, or West Bank and Gaza (Strip).
Other terms and definitions
- Greater Middle East
In a preparatory working paper for the June 2004 G8 Summit, the U.S. government (at the end of the George W. Bush administration's first term) defined the 'Greater Middle East as including the Arab states, Israel, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan.[7]
- MENAP
From April 2013, the International Monetary Fund started using a new analytical region called MENAP (Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan), which adds Afghanistan and Pakistan to MENA countries.[24] Now MENAP is a prominent economic grouping in IMF reports.[25][26]
- MENASA
MENASA refers to the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia region.[27] Its usage consists of the region of MENA together with South Asia, with Dubai chosen by the United Nations as the data hub for the region.[6] In some contexts, specifically the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, the region is abbreviated as SAMENA instead of the more common MENASA.
- MENAT
The term MENAT (Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey) has been used to include Turkey in the list of MENA countries.[28][29]
- Near East
The term Near East was commonly used before the term Middle East was coined by the British in the early 20th century. The term Ancient Near East is commonly used by scholars for the region in antiquity. Some organisations and scholars insist on still using 'Near East' today, with some including North Africa, but definitions range widely and there is no consensus on its geographical application.
- EMME
EMME refers to a grouping of 18 nations situated in and around the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East. The 18 nations in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East are: Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, UAE, and Yemen.[30]
Climate change
Sharp global temperature and sea level changes, shifting precipitation patterns and increased frequency of extreme weather events are some of the main impacts of climate change as identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).[36] The MENA region is especially vulnerable to such impacts due to its arid and semi-arid environment, facing climatic challenges such as low rainfall, high temperatures and dry soil.[36][37] The climatic conditions that foster such challenges for MENA are projected by the IPCC to worsen throughout the 21st century.[36] If greenhouse gas emissions are not significantly reduced, part of the MENA region risks becoming uninhabitable before the year 2100.[38][39][40]
Climate change is expected to put significant strain on already scarce water and agricultural resources within the MENA region, threatening the national security and political stability of all included countries.[41] Over 60 percent of the region's population lives in high and very high water-stressed areas compared to the global average of 35 percent.[42] This has prompted some MENA countries to engage with the issue of climate change on an international level through environmental accords such as the Paris Agreement. Law and policy are also being established on a national level amongst MENA countries, with a focus on the development of renewable energies.[43]Culture
Human rights
Religion
Migrant population, mostly within the Gulf nations, practice mostly the beliefs they follow to, such as Buddhism and Hinduism among South Asian, East Asian and Southeast Asian migrants.[46][47]
Demographics
The demographics of the
Economy and education
The MENA region has vast reserves of
As of 2023, 7 of the 13 OPEC nations are within the MENA region.[citation needed]
According to Pew Research Center's 2016 "Religion and Education Around the World" study, 40% of the adult population in MENA had completed less than a year of primary school. The fraction was higher for women, of whom half had been to school for less than a year.[51]
Politics
Stability and instability in the region
In its
Armed conflicts
During and after the
See also
- Arab world
- Asia-Pacific
- Climate change in the Middle East and North Africa
- Demographics of the Middle East and North Africa
- Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East (EMME)
- Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA)
- Fertile Crescent
- Greater Middle East
- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
- List of country groupings
- Middle East economic integration
- Near East
- Sahel
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External links
- The dictionary definition of MENA at Wiktionary
- Media related to Middle East and North Africa at Wikimedia Commons