In the October edition of its Regional Economic Outlook report, the IMF explains that a major challenge in the implementation of coronavirus-related support for emerging market and developing economies has been reaching informal workers.
"Several innovative digital solutions have recently been put in place to address this problem, and have increased the number of beneficiaries of social protection schemes and made them more targeted," the Washington-based institution noted.
"Morocco is a success story. The government has been able to reach informal workers through a combination of mobile payments for those who qualify for noncontributory health insurance benefits (the RAMED medical insurance program) and online cash claims for those who do not qualify," it added.
According to the IMF report, households benefiting from RAMED received a mobile payment of MAD 800–1,200 (US$80–$120), depending on household composition.
As of April this year, the program had reached 85 % of eligible households in th informal sector, added the report that also discusses the growth outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia region, which is projected to fall by 4.1 % in 2020 (a 1.3 percentage points larger than projected in April 2020 forecast).
With the plunge in oil prices and output, available data point to a collapse in oil revenues during the first half of 2020, approaching a maximum of 50 % (for Iraq), the IMF added, stressing that oil futures curves indicate that prices are expected to increase toward $48 a barrel in the medium term (from $41 for 2020), remaining some 25% below the 2019 average.
In its report, IMF detailed measures taken by governments in the region to stem the impact of the pandemic, noting that some countries, including Morocco, have made efforts to control prices, mainly for essential and medical products.
In the oil-importing countries of the MENA region, declines in trade, tourism and remittances have virtually erased the positive effect of lower oil prices, the Washington-based institution said.
"Sizable contractions are projected for Morocco and Jordan—7 % and 5 %, respectively—driven by severe impacts on tourism and manufacturing, as trading partners’ growth continues to lag and travel remains disrupted, the IMF concluded.