The Impact of ICT and R&D on Economic Growth in MENA Countries

Abstract

This paper explores the impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Research and Development (R&D) on economic growth in MENA countries. The study uses panel data covering the period from 1990 to 2022 for ten Middle Eastern and North African nations. The objective is to assess how ICT usage and R&D outputs influence economic growth in both the short and long term. Various estimation methods are applied, including DCCE, CS-ARDL, CCEMG, and AMG, following the confirmation of cointegration using the Westerlund test. The study includes key economic indicators such as GDP per capita, gross fixed capital formation (GFCF), and gross enrollment ratio, along with ICT and R&D variables. The results from the four estimation techniques reveal that ICT and R&D have a negative and statistically insignificant impact on economic growth in both the short and long term. However, robustness checks using CCEMG and AMG indicate a positive and significant effect of GFCF, where a 1% increase in GFCF leads to a 8.23e-08% and 1.10e-07% rise in GDP per capita, respectively. Additionally, the gross enrollment ratio shows no significant effect. Finally, causality analysis suggests a bidirectional relationship between ICT, R&D, and GDP per capita.