Maktoob Research announced yesterday (March 22nd, 2009) the results of its ‘Global Financial Crisis’ survey. The online survey comprised of questions regarding the global financial crisis and its effect on individuals across the MENA region, such as: How has the financial crisis affected you personally? what are you most worried about, in regards to your finances? are you better off, worse off or not affected? And finally, How do you see your country’s economy is likely to be over the next two years?

Filled out by over 2685 residents from Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the UAE, the survey highlighted the growing concern around the region about the increasing living costs and rising food prices, and other worrying outcomes of the global financial crisis. Almost half of the participants who filled out the online survey were from the GCC region (45%), followed by North Africa region (Morocco and Egypt) with 29% and the Levant region (Syria, Jordan and Lebanon) with 26% of the total number of participants.

Issues such as increased living costs with decreased incomes and job losses were highlighted as the main reasons why people had been affected by the crisis. With regards to what people are worried about, the online survey indicated that whereas women worry about finding a job and their homes and household possessions, men on the other hand are more concerned about macroeconomic problems and job security. The results also highlighted the fact that finding a job is the top concern for people aged between 18 and 25 years old. However, those aged between 26 and 35 years old, are mostly worried about keeping their current job. For people aged between 36 and 45 years old, maintaining their household is the major concern, while costs of healthcare and living topped the list of concerns for the elderly. Another interesting fact highlighted in the survey is that very few people were worried about credit card debt in North Africa, the Levant, Bahrain and Oman. Yet, in the following GCC countries; Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, credit card debt is more of a concern. Unsurprisingly, 25% of people from the UAE who filled out the survey are concerned with credit card debt.

The study also focused on how the global financial crisis has affected people on a personal level and whether people in the MENA region are better off, worse off or in the same financial position. The results showed that individuals in Morocco, Syria, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar are in more or less the same financial situation, whereas people from Jordan, Lebanon and the UAE are worse off at the moment. The results also shed light on the current frame of mind of Arabs in the MENA region, aged between 18 and 45 years, as well as touching upon the cost of increasing utility bills, employment, day-to-day living expenses, job security, high gas prices, healthcare costs, higher taxes, the declining dollar value and credit card debt.

With regards to whether the economic situation will worsen in the next few years, the results showed that 31% of the people who filled out the survey are optimistic about their economy’s recovery, 33% are pessimistic, believing that things will worsen in the next few years, 22% believe that things will remain the same for the time being, and a surprising 14% are uncertain about the future. The study also revealed that whereas Egyptians, Bahrainis, Saudis, Syrians and Jordanians expressed the most concern about the state of their own economies, Qataris were the most confident about the state of their economy and its recovery.