IMF: Libya set to lead Arab states in economic growth by 2025

Libya is poised to lead the Arab world in economic growth by 2025, with a projected growth rate of 13.7 per cent, according to the Libya Observer, citing the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This sharp rise comes after a modest 2.4 per cent growth in 2023, largely driven by a resurgence in the oil sector and recent stability within the Central Bank.

توقع #صندوق_النقد_الدولي تحقيق ليبيا، نموا في إجمالي ناتجها المحلي بـ13.7% خلال العام 2025، مستفيدة من ارتفاع أسعار النفط وتعافي إمدادات الخام، لتسجل بذلك أعلى نمو اقتصادي بين الدول المصدرة للنفط في الشرق الأوسط وآسيا الوسطى، بما فيها الدول العربية.#ليبيا #Libya pic.twitter.com/6n9FgvIzXt

— فواصل (@fawaselmedia) November 3, 2024

Despite the optimistic forecast, the IMF has warned of the risks associated with the North African country’s heavy dependence on oil and gas, which currently make up 60 per cent of its GDP, 94 per cent of exports, and 97 per cent of government revenues. The IMF has urged Libya to develop a national economic strategy that moves beyond hydrocarbons to ensure future resilience.

Last month it was reported that Libya’s oil production has reached one million barrels per day (bpd), the first time in two months that the country has hit this milestone.

Late last week the Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh announced that Libya’s oil production has now reached 1.363 million bpd, the highest since 2013. He praised this achievement as part of a broader plan to expand oil output to two million bpd by the end of 2025.

According to the World Bank the private sector in Libya remains underdeveloped, but has considerable potential for growth and currently employs about 14 per cent of the workforce. Although Libya is classified as an “upper middle-income country,” years of conflict and internal divisions have led to insufficient public investment and poor infrastructure maintenance, despite growing oil production.

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