Very timely book by the World Bank on Air Pollution, Marine Plastics, and Coastal Erosion in MENA. Unfortunately, 1) MENA’s cities are on average more than 5 times as air-polluted as recommended by WHO guidelines.  2) MENA’s seas are amongst the most plastics-polluted internationally and 3) in Maghreb region, coastal erosion is about 10 times faster than the global average.

As a result, the economic damages from pollution, marine plastics, and coastal erosion are estimated to about 3 percent of GDP every year in MENA . In addition, ambient air pollution causes about 270,000 premature mortalities each year in the region. A set of policy recommendations is proposed.

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