Ezzeddine Larbi
Ezzeddine Larbi was a Tunisian economist and professor of economics. He held senior positions at the World Bank in Washington DC and at the African Development Bank where he led multiple international development missions.
1. Early Life & Education Ezzeddine Larbi was born in Sousse. After completing his undergraduate degree at the University of Tunis (Tunisia), he completed his Masters at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, and his PhD in Economics at the University of California Los Angeles. He completed postgraduate studies in international management at the George Washington University and at Harvard University.
2. Academic Career Ezzeddine Larbi started as a lecturer in international trade and econometrics at UCLA. He taught courses at universities including, George Washington University, Virginia Tech, and Johns Hopkins. He is a founding member of the Development Funding Institute for the Arab Maghreb (IFID) in Tunis [1] and served as a Director of Studies from 1983 to 1998. As a Professor of Economics, he taught a variety of courses on economics at the University of Tunis, including the Faculty of law and political and economic science, and at the High Commercial Studies Institute (HEC). Over the course of his academic career, Ezzeddine Larbi published several monographs on international economic relations. He is also the author of many reports and journal articles on topics such as monetary policies, the role played by central banks in developing and emerging countries, and the sequencing of economic and financial reforms.
3. Professional Experience Ezzeddine Larbi started his career as an Economist at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, om the socio-economic and planning division. He worked for the Tunisian Government in advisory positions during his career, notably as Chief Economic Adviser to the Prime Minister in 1987-1989, where he was the head of all economic and financial policy issues and oversaw the privatization and restructuring of over twenty-five major public enterprises and was a board member of the Central Bank of Tunisia. In 1999, Ezzeddine moved back to the United-States where he held the position of Lead Economist at the World Bank in Washington, DC, until 2010. Working closely with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he oversaw the negotiations of several missions for the economic and financial reform programs.
From 2004 to 2008, he was seconded from the World Bank to the African Development Bank as a Chief Economist, where he led several missions on governance and economic and financial reforms. Mr. Larbi became an advisor and a consultant for the World Bank and the African Development Bank in charge of economic and financial reforms as well as governance-related issues in the North-Africa region. Ezzeddine Larbi was a member of the Foundation for African E-Governance Inclusive Development and the Tunisia-United States Friendship Association. 4. Awards and Recognition Over the course of his career first as a professor, then as a civil servant and an economist, Ezzeddine Larbi received several awards and honors, including the World Bank President’s Award for Excellence in recognition of his exceptional leadership, and the African Development Bank’s Merit Award, as well as a Special Award for outstanding achievements for effective donor coordination and harmonization.
5. Notes and References
a. Notes
[1] The Development Funding Institute for the Arab Maghreb (IFID) is a higher education establishment that was created in 1981 by Tunisia and Algeria to provide vocal training specialized in banking and insurance for the benefit of private companies and State entities. For more information, see https://www.atlas-mag.net/en/article/development-funding-institute-for-the-arab- maghreb-ifid.
b. References
• https://www.leaders.com.tn/article/24901-qui-est-ezzeddine-larbi
• https://www.devex.com/people/ezzeddine-l-919449
6. Publications
a. Monographs
• Foreign Capital Inflow and Optimal External Indebtedness for the Tunisian Economy: The Application of Control Theory to Policy Problems. Michigan: Ann Arbor, 1993.
• Relations économiques internationales. Tunis: Centre de Recherches et d'Etudes Administratives, 1993.
b. Journal Articles • “Tunisia’s Approach Toward the Advanced Developing Country Threshold.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 12, 1992/1993: 14-23. • “Stratégie pour le commerce extérieur et l'investissement étranger en Tunisie.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 8, 1990: 2-12. • “Privatisation : expériences et réflexions.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 7, 1990: 15-18. • “Système bancaire et financier : esquisse des problèmes et adaptation du système.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 5, 1989: 7-14. • “Réflexion sur la libéralisation financière externe de la Tunisie.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 4, 1988: 11-14. • “Tarification des services publics en Tunisie : cas de la STEG et de la SNCFT.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 2, 1987: 44-52. • With Mongi BEN OTHMANE and Mohamed HEDI LAHOUEL. “Perspectives de coordination des politiques de change dans les pays du Maghreb.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 1, 1987: 27-34. • With Mokhtar SOUISSI and Mongi SAFRA. “Endettement extérieur et croissance dans les pays du Maghreb.” Finances et développements au Maghreb, no. 1, 1987: 11-20. • “La relation entre commerce international et aide extérieure dans la théorie du contrôle optimal.” Revue tunisienne d’économie, no. 1, 1984. c. Press Articles • “La grande crise de la Covid-19 et ses impacts sur l’économie mondiale (3-3) : Quid de la Tunisie ?” Kapitalis.com, 16 August 2020. Link: http://kapitalis.com/tunisie/2020/08/16/la-grande-crise-de-la-covid-19-et-ses- impacts-sur-leconomie-mondiale-3-3-quid-de-mondialisation/ • “La grande crise de la Covid-19 et ses impacts sur l’économie mondiale (2-3) : Quid de la Tunisie ?” Kapitalis.com, 14 August 2020. Link: http://kapitalis.com/tunisie/2020/08/14/la-grande-crise-de-la-covid-19-et-ses- impacts-sur-leconomie-mondiale-2-3-quid-de-la-tunisie/ • “La grande crise de la Covid-19 et ses impacts sur l’économie mondiale (2-3) : Quid de la Tunisie ?” Kapitalis.com, 12 August 2020.
Link: http://kapitalis.com/tunisie/2020/08/12/la-grande-crise-de-la-covid-19-et-ses- impacts-sur-leconomie-mondiale-1-2/ • “Analyse crise de Covid-19 : Ses impacts sur les plans mondial, régional et national”, Lapresse.tn, 9 August 2020. Link: https://lapresse.tn/70136/analyse-crise-de-covid-19-ses-impacts-sur-les-plans- mondial-regional-et-national/ • “Economie et pandémie : de la grande crise de Covid-19 et ses impacts”, Leaders.com.tn, 9 August 2020. Link: https://www.leaders.com.tn/article/30395-ezzeddine-larbi-economie-et-pandemie- de-la-grande-crise-de-covid-19-et-ses-impacts • “La politique économique de la Tunisie et son programme avec le FMI et les bailleurs de fonds.” Kapitalis.com, 17 February 2020. Link: http://kapitalis.com/tunisie/2020/02/17/la-politique-economique-de-la-tunisie-et- son-programme-avec-le-fmi-et-les-bailleurs-de-fonds/ • “Tunisie : Sortie de crise et nouveau modèle de développement.” Leaders.com.tn, 20 October 2019. Link: https://www.leaders.com.tn/article/28269-ezzeddine-larbi-tunisie-sortie-de-crise-et- nouveau-modele-de-developpement • “Propositions de sortie de crise en Tunisie.” Leaders.com.tn, 20 June 2018. Link: https://www.leaders.com.tn/article/24900-ezzeddine-larbi-propositions-de-sortie-de- crise-en-tunisie d. Other Publications • With Tahar EL ALMI. “Étude de l’évolution des salaires réels en Tunisie : Avant et après la révolution 2005-2015.ˮ La Marsa: Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, 2016. Link: https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/tunesien/14391.pdf • With Tahar EL ALMI. “Étude de l’évolution des salaires réels en Tunisie : Avant et après la révolution 2005-2015.ˮ La Marsa: Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, 2016. Link: https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/tunesien/14392.pdf • “La politique nationale économique et son environnement.” Tunis: Institut de Financement du Développement du Maghreb Arabe (I.FI.D), 1990.
• Oxford Economics, in collaboration with Ezzeddine LARBI, Ammar JELASSI, Faïçal ZIDI, and Zouhair El Kadhi. “L’impact économique de l’exploration des schistes riches en liquids et du gaz de schiste et les perspectives en Tunisie.” October 2013. Link: https://www.leaders.com.tn/uploads/FCK_files/file/PRESENTATION%20ETUDE%20(V ersionFranc%CC%A7aise).pdf
7. In the Media
• SAIDI, Marwa. “Gestion de la crise liée au coronavirus : Que faire face à la disette budgétaire ?” Lapresse.tn, 14 October 2020.
Link: https://lapresse.tn/75879/gestion-de-la-crise-liee-au-coronavirus-que-faire-face-a-la- disette-budgetaire/
• Le Quotidien. “Maître de l’inflation et pouvoir d’achat. Pour une nouvelle politique salariale en Tunisie.” no. 4842, 27 November 2016.
• The Economist. “Ali Baba gone, but what about the 40 thieves?” 20 January 2011.
Link: https://www.economist.com/briefing/2011/01/20/ali-baba-gone-but-what-about-the- 40-thieves
• FERCHICHI, Abdelhamid. “La note d’orientation du Plan stratégique de développement 2016-2020 : Une utopie ?.” Africanmanager.com, 1st October 2015.
Link: https://africanmanager.com/06_la-note-dorientation-du-plan-strategique-de- developpement-2016-2020-une-utopie/
• NEWMAN, Barry. “Democracy Is Victim As Tunisia Forestalls Strife Like Algeria’s: Tunis Represses Islamists While Offering Populace Supply of Material Goods Facel Oueslati’s New Life.” Wall Street Journal, 22 June 1995.
8. External Links
• African Development Bank: https://www.afdb.org/en
• Carthage High Commercial Studies Institute: http://www.ihec.rnu.tn/
• Development Funding Institute for the Arab Maghreb: http://www.ifid.org.tn/Fr /
• Harvard University: https://www.harvard.edu/
• International Monetary Fund: https://www.imf.org/en/Home • United Nations Economic Commission for Africa: https://www.uneca.org/ • University of California Los-Angeles: https://www.ucla.edu/ • University of Minnesota: https://twin-cities.umn.edu/ • University of Tunis: http://www.utunis.rnu.tn/ • World Bank: https://www.worldbank.org/en/home