世界银行-环境约束与企业参与全球价值链：中东和北非国家的证据

11161 Environmental Stringency and Firms’Participation in Global Value Chains Evidence for MENA Countries Nada HazemChahir Zaki Middle East and North Africa RegionOffice of the Chief EconomistJune 2025 Policy Research Working Paper11161 Abstract The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region standsamong the most vulnerable areas to the impacts of climatechange. At the same time, with lax environmental regula-tions, this region’s integration into Global Value Chains(GVC) is modest. Thus, this paper aims to examine theeffect of environmental stringency on GVC participationin MENA countries. To do so, using the World BankEnterprise Surveys, this paper analyzes how environmentalregulations and treaties affect both the extensive and theintensive margins of GVCs. The main results show thatnational environmental regulations increase the likelihoodof integrating into GVCs when it is measured using both thesimple and the strict definitions. This result highlights therole of such regulations in attracting GVCs in developing countries and thus lends support to the Porter Hypothesis.The paper also shows that these regulations increase theeffect of spending on research and development on GVC.Yet, the results are less conclusive for the role of environ-mental treaties. These results remain robust when a mixedmultilevel approach is used, and when large exporters, whomight lobby to affect policy choices, are dropped from theanalysis. In addition, at the sectoral level, national regula-tions are associated with higher GVC participation in thefood sector in the MENA region and lower participation inthe plastics one. Finally, regulatory stringency increases theprobability of GVC participation for both SMEs and largefirms, with the effect generally stronger for SMEs. The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about developmentissues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry thenames of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely thoseof the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank andits affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent. Environmental Stringency and Firms’ Participation in Global ValueChains: Evidence for MENA countries1 Nada Hazem2Chahir Zaki3 JEL classification:F12, Q56. Keywords:Global value chains; Firms; Environmental stringency 1.Introduction The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region4stands among the most vulnerable areasto the impacts of climate change. The region’s ecosystem is increasingly facing a seriousnumber of problems such as droughts, heatwaves and rising sea levels (Lionello et al., 2014).Being highly-dependent on climate-sensitive agriculture and having a significant share ofpopulation residing in coastal areas, the MENA region is threatened by severe repercussions interms of food security, human health and livelihoods (Ezzeldin, Adshead, and Smith, 2023).Accordingly, a significant number of MENA countries have begun to pursue measures tomitigate climate change and shift towards a low-carbon, resilient economy. Nearly everycountry in the region has submitted a roadmap outlining its contributions to the globalframework established by the Paris Agreement, aimed at fostering a climate-resilient future(Sieghart and Betre, 2018). At the same time, the region’s integration into Global Value Chains (GVCs) remains modest.Based on Ayadi et al. (2020), the MENA region possesses an untapped potential to makesubstantial contributions to GVCs given its favorable geographical location, proximity to mainmarkets,resource endowments,and abundant human capital.They also mention thatintegrating GVCs could play a vital role in stimulating the region's exports, enhancingemployment opportunities, as well as boosting firms’ growth and productivity. Accordingly,improving MENA countries’ insertion into the global networks of production is crucial forstrengthening economic resilience and fostering competitiveness in the region. Indeed, transitioning towards more sustainable and diversified economies could create bothopportunities and challenges for the MENA region’s integration into GVCs. On the one hand,more diversification and lower reliance on fossil fuels could increase the region’s ability tointegrate into more sophisticated and higher-value-added activities within the GVC (Fayek andZaki, 2023). Besides, adherence to international environmental standards and certifications ishighly attractive to green investments and companies seeking to align their position with theleading international norms (Wang et al., 2021). This becomes even more important as severalexport destinations start imposing r