2020: The Year We Stayed Away

December 2020

Social distancing, wearing masks, scavenging for toilet paper while spraying disinfectant everywhere: what kind of year was this? A tragic one for many, but we end with a hope for vaccine somewhat realized.

Social Media Stands as the First Draft of History

By Sean David Hobbs / December 12, 2020

As fake news and reality collide, what impact is the current media and political climate having on the initial outline of U.S. contemporary history?

Learning from a Diplomatic Trailblazer to Tackle Global Inequalities

By Sean David Hobbs /

Guest speaker at the 16th Nadia Younes Memorial Lecture, Dutch Minister Sigrid Kaag, presented ideas for geopolitical challenges in the Middle East and North Africa during and after the coronavirus pandemic.

South Africa after Covid-19: Recovery or Recession

By Helmo Preuss / Fall 2020

South Africa has had a plethora of economic plans, but most have not been implemented

Exposing Inequality, Accelerating Innovation: COVID-19 and the Digital Economy

By Omar Auf /

COVID-19 has highlighted the great promise borne by the digital economy, as well as the challenges standing in the way of reaping its full potential.

Enhancing Mediterranean Integration

By Blanca Moreno-Dodson / Summer 2020

Trade liberalization, human capital development, and sectoral reforms can bring Mediterranean countries closer together.

Receding Multilateralism and the Role of the Dollar in a COVID-19 World

/ Fall 2020

The shock of COVID-19 has plunged the world into an economic crisis, demonstrated the fragility of economic relations and supply chains, and led to a reevaluation of several concepts taken for granted.

Will the U.S. Evolve its Foreign Policy from Past Mistakes?

/ Fall 2020

Former U.S. Ambassador and American University in Cairo President Francis Ricciardone evaluates how the United States has dealt with global crises in the 21st century.

Explaining How Washington and the Election Works

By Sean David Hobbs / Fall 2020

In 2016, all predictions about the U.S. elections were wrong. Will Washington insiders get it right this time?

The United Nations at 75: Multilateralism at a Crossroads

By Antonio Patriota / Fall 2020

If the UN survived the Cold War and a later unipolarity, shouldn’t it be thriving in a multipolar world?

Resisting the Tide of Bigotry

By Jonathan Weisman / Fall 2020

American Jews are left divided and looking for new directions as Donald Trump embraces the white supremacism of the alt-right and the Zionism of Benjamin Netanyahu

Five Years after Agreeing on the Sustainable Development Goals: Where are We?

By Laila El Baradei /

Much more needs to be done on the SDGs, how they are reported, and how they are ultimately evaluated.

The World Is Watching the United States

By Diana Bartelli Carlin / Fall 2020

The United States is facing a perfect storm that puts it in the headlights of its counterparts’ world views.

Arabs Try to Make Sense of What is Happening in the United States

By Dania El Akkawi / October 5, 2020

How have contentious domestic crises in the United States impacted the Arab world’s perception of the global leader?

Lebanon At a Crossroads … Again

By Sarah El-Richani /

Lebanon is not just dealing with the aftermath of the deadly Beirut explosion but also a full-blown economic and financial crisis

Addressing the Global Health Crisis of Stunting in Times of COVID-19

By Carl Manlan and Javaid Iqbal and Junaid Nabi /

Stunting can be prevented by using technology to improve agriculture and strong governmental support.

What the Beirut Blast means for Lebanon’s Refugees

By Ola G. El-Taliawi and Tamirace Fakhoury / September 11, 2020

Inclusive refugee policies and a renewed approach to humanitarian relief will be needed to protect Lebanon’s most vulnerable.

COVID-19 after an “Annus Horribilis”

By Ali Fathollah-Nejad /

The Coronavirus in Iran after a “Horrible Year”

The Race for the World Trade Organization

By Nadeen Shaker /

The Cairo Review’s Nadeen Shaker interviews Abdel Hamid Mamdouh, a veteran trade expert with over 35 years of experience, about running to become director-general of the World Trade Organization, how trade will change in a post-COVID-19 world, and how can developing countries expect to recover.

African Societies Plan for a Post-Pandemic Economic Recovery

By Helmo Preuss /

Plans share a common thread of infrastructure spending and intra-African trade

COVID-19 Heightens Stakes for Migrants in the Mediterranean

By Omar Auf /

COVID-19 has exacerbated anti-migration trends in the Mediterranean region, leaving migrants and refugees in increasingly vulnerable positions.

COVID-19: America, China and the Conspiracy War

By Amanda Tapp /

The two rival powers have been at loggerheads about the spread of the novel coronavirus, but maybe it’s time they cooperate for the greater good.

Life Under Lockdown on a Small Island: a Personal Perspective

By Tim Cullen /

One small state’s ability to weather the coronavirus storm by remaining transparent and drawing upon the population’s sense of community.

Climate Change and COVID-19: There Is More Than One Curve to Flatten

By Dania El Akkawi / Summer 2020

What COVID-19 response can tell us about our readiness to deal with climate change

The Viral Quotient: How Arab Media Responded to COVID-19

By Lobna Khairy and Sarah El-Shaarawi /

From social media to government narratives, the audience was bombarded with a plethora of information, some of which was confusing and contradictory.

Reviving Botswana’s Tourism Industry after COVID-19

By Wame L. Hambira /

Countries which depend on tourism as a major revenue source have been struggling in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.

COVID-19: Isle of Man Response and Issues for the Future for Small States

By Mark Shimmin /

“There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen.” Vladimir Lenin

COVID-19 and ‘Reinventing’ a New Economic Model

By Ahmed Fayed /

Recovery from the recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic may require the development of a new and more equitable economic model.

Urban-Rural Disconnect: COVID-19 and Sustainability

By David Dumke and Thomas L. Crisman and Zachary S. Winters /

The Urban-Rural Disconnect and how COVID-19 is influencing the Nexus of water, energy and food.

Building a More Multilateral World Order

By Amina Abdel-Halim /

As COVID-19 amplifies isolationist trends in the West, Asian voices call for increased international cooperation.

Will China’s E-commerce Reshape a Reopening World?

By Cheng Li and Ryan McElveen / June 10, 2020

China’s advances in digital-buying make the nation a harbinger of how a post-lockdown global economy could look.

COVID-19 and Social Policies in the MENA Region

By Ghada Barsoum /

A new test to overly-stressed systems.

Challenges to Migration Governance in the Arab Region

By Amina Abdel-Halim / June 3, 2020

Since its endorsement in 2018, a wealth of challenges have delayed the full implementation of the Global Compact for Migration in the Arab region.

Suspending Immigration Will Hurt America’s Recovery

By Laura Collins /

Suspending immigration is not the key to U.S. economic woes; rather, it will be a hindrance to getting the economy back on its feet.

How to Deal with COVID-19 in Africa

By Arnaud Oulepo and Carl Manlan /

Strengthening the capacity, the data networks, and the community response to win against COVID-19.

COVID-19: Lessons from the Black Death

By Peter L. Larson / May 29, 2020

In order to map our future, we may look to the past on how health threats changed societies … or did they?

Gulf Arab States Review Tax Regimes Amid Economic Crisis

By Robert Mogielnicki /

Value-added and excise taxes offer Gulf Arab states narrow fiscal levers to help offset the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis and drop in oil prices.

How Will the Coronavirus Crisis Affect Africa’s Developmental Focus?

By Magda Shahin /

Mitigating the effects of the coronavirus in Africa and implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area go hand-in-hand.

Reinventing Governance for a Fragile and Complex New World

By Ashraf Swelam /

The COVID-19 crisis has laid bare the weaknesses of the international system; to fix the present and prepare for the future, we must pivot to a resilience paradigm.

Egypt’s Most Vulnerable and COVID-19

By Elena Habersky / Summer 2020

Are refugees and asylum seekers protected by its strong domestic laws and international commitments?

Women and Education in the Arab World

By Sean David Hobbs /

Malak Zaalouk, education expert, discusses the position of women and access to education in the Arab World with the Cairo Review’s Senior Editor Sean David Hobbs in a special podcast recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic lock-down.

Erdoğan Fails the Coronavirus Test

By Gönül Tol /

The president’s concentration of executive power has left Turkey vulnerable to decisions based more on saving the economy—and thus his own skin—than on stopping the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thunderbolt Hitting the Land

By Nasser Alkidwa /

An uncertain future looms as Palestine and Israel attempt to mitigate the onslaught of COVID-19.

Long-term Implications of COVID-19

By Amina Abdel-Halim /

Most policy-makers are taking on COVID-19 as a one-time challenge, but a multi-round scenario could have disastrous implications for the global economy.

“America First” In a World Crisis

By Larry LaRocco /

How Donald Trump’s America First policy failed

COVID-19 Impact on Africa Elections

By Arnaud Oulepo /

The pandemic is forcing African states to choose between holding elections on time and postponing them for safety. The risks run both ways.

Seeing COVID-19 as an Opportunity

By Ted Reynolds /

Extremist groups will attempt to take advantage of the turmoil created by COVID-19—and it’s not the first time.

Let Conflicts Be Bygones

By Nadeen Shaker /

A sobering look at how COVID-19 will affect Libya, Syria, and Yemen, where war and conflict have not only decimated most of these countries’ precious resources but are further destroying what remains of them.

Sustainable Solutions for an Economic Crisis

By Amina Abdel-Halim /

As the world grapples to mitigate a looming economic crisis, a roadmap already exists: the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

South Africa latest to apply for COVID-19 aid from New Development Bank

By Helmo Preuss / April 30, 2020

This will mostly be used to fund medical equipment such as surgical masks, respirators, and testing supplies.

COVID-19 Pandemic