Seminars, Webinars, & High-level Events
Webinar on Nowcasting GCC GDP: A Machine Learning Solution for Enhanced Non-Oil GDP Real-Time Prediction
February 12, 2026
The International Monetary Fund Middle East Center for Economics and Finance (IMF-CEF), in partnership with the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA) and in collaboration with the EU-Mediterranean and African Network for Economic Studies (EMANES), successfully launched the IMF-CEF & EMEA Joint Research Webinar Series on Regional Economic Challenges in the Arab and Mediterranean regions on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. The inaugural session was chaired by Mr. Moez Souissi (Deputy Director of the IMF-CEF) and Ms. Rym Ayadi (President of EMEA and Director of EMANES), who delivered the opening remarks. Mr. Zouheir El-Sahli (Senior Economist at the IMF-CEF) moderated the event.
The first webinar featured a presentation of a recent IMF Working Paper “Nowcasting GCC GDP: A Machine Learning Solution for Enhanced Non-Oil GDP Real-Time Prediction,” by Ms. Yuan (Monica) Gao Rollinson (Middle East and Central Asia Department) and Ms. Greta Polo (Western Hemisphere Department). The speakers discussed a machine-learning-based nowcasting framework that generates real-time estimates of quarterly non-oil GDP growth for GCC countries.
This event was well attended and attracted a diverse audience, comprising public sector officials, academics, and researchers from a wide set of institutions across the Arab and Mediterranean regions.
For more details about the event, please refer to the following links:
Webinar Recording
Presentation
