Job loss during COVID-19: estimating the poverty and food security effects in Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco

Adel Ben Youssef () and Burim Prenaj ()
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Adel Ben Youssef: GREDEG-CNRS & University Côte d’Azur, France
Burim Prenaj: Faculty of Economics, University of Prishtina “Hasan Prishtina”

Eurasian Business Review, 2025, vol. 15, issue 2, No 7, 563-592

Abstract: Abstract This paper examines the socioeconomic impact of job losses induced by the COVID-19 pandemic on household income and food security in Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco. We investigate how these job losses affect different vulnerable subgroups, such as women, informal workers, and low-skilled employees, using data from the COVID-19 MENA Monitor Household Survey. Our analysis employs propensity score weighting to address selection bias, allowing for a robust comparison between individuals who lost their jobs due to the pandemic and those who did not. We find that job-losers experienced significantly larger reductions in household income and heightened food insecurity compared to job-retainers. Additionally, job-losers were more likely to deplete their savings, seek assistance from relatives, sell assets, and back-migrate to family homes as coping strategies. These findings underscore the need for targeted policy interventions to mitigate the long-term effects of job loss on vulnerable populations in the MENA region.

Keywords: Labor market; COVID-19; Job loss; Food security; Poverty; Tunisia; Egypt; Morocco (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J0 J21 J23 J64 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s40821-025-00294-x

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