The World Bank is extending support to Middle East and North African countries as they battle the coronavirus pandemic.
The immediate response includes financing, policy advice, and technical assistance to help countries cope with urgent health needs of the pandemic and slow the spread of the disease.
“We have been working closely, around the clock, with governments across the region to dispatch immediate help,” Ferid Belhaj, World Bank vice president for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement.
“This effort will continue throughout the crisis and beyond, as we work to save lives, slow the spread of the pandemic, and hasten the recovery across the region.”
The lender’s initial Covid-19 response in Mena countries includes new projects and operational measures in Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Yemen, Djibouti and West Bank and Gaza.
In Egypt, the World Bank will provide $7.9 million (Dh29m) to fund emergency response activities related to the Covid-19 outbreak including supporting the country in the delivery of equipment and supplies.
In Lebanon, the World Bank on March 12, reallocated $40m under the Lebanon Health Resilience Project to respond to the crisis. The financing will help equip governmental hospitals, increasing their ability to test and treat suspected cases, and strengthen the capacity of health workers and front-line responders to prevent further spread of the disease.
The World Bank also deployed an emergency response to help Morocco cope with the crisis including restructuring of $275m Disaster Risk Management Development Policy Loan with a Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option (Cat-DDO).
“The restructuring adds a health-related trigger to the operation to allow the immediate release of funding under the program to address emergency measures,” it said.
For West Bank and Gaza, an amount of $5.8m was allocated to help the Palestinian government deal with the pandemic. On March 6, the World Bank reallocated an initial amount of $800,000 from the Health System Strengthening Project to cover urgent priorities such as equipment and materials for infection, prevention and control, isolation and case management. On April 2, a new fund of $5m was also approved to support health emergency preparedness capabilities and strengthen the overall healthcare services.
In Yemen, a $26.9m IDA grant was approved to help the country immediately respond and mitigate the risks associated with the Covid-19 outbreak and limit the possible extent of the spread of the disease in the country. The World Bank is also supporting Djibouti with a $5m IDA credit, approved by the Board of Directors on April 2.
Last month, the lender said it is rolling out a $14 billion fast-track package to strengthen the Covid-19 response in developing countries and shorten the time to recovery. IFC, a member of the World Bank group, will increase financing availability to $8bn as part of the $14bn package, up from an earlier $6bn, to support private companies and their employees hurt by the economic downturn caused by the spread of the coronavirus.
The World Bank is planning to deploy up to $160bn over 15 months to protect the poor and vulnerable, support businesses, and bolster economic recovery.
The International Monetary Fund is also allotting $50bn in emergency funding to poor and middle-income countries that may need assistance in responding to the coronavirus outbreak.
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
The Byblos iftar in numbers
29 or 30 days – the number of iftar services held during the holy month
50 staff members required to prepare an iftar
200 to 350 the number of people served iftar nightly
160 litres of the traditional Ramadan drink, jalab, is served in total
500 litres of soup is served during the holy month
200 kilograms of meat is used for various dishes
350 kilograms of onion is used in dishes
5 minutes – the average time that staff have to eat
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
PROFILE OF INVYGO
Started: 2018
Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo
Based: Dubai
Sector: Transport
Size: 9 employees
Investment: $1,275,000
Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri
