The COVID-19 outbreak continues to spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)/Arab States region, with 913,226 confirmed cases and 22,500 associated deaths as of 6 July 2020.

It is estimated that an additional 8.3 million people in the Arab region could fall into poverty (based on pretransfer estimates).

Against this background, the consequences of the pandemic require responses that go far beyond the health sector, including measures to assist people and protect them against falling into poverty and food insecurity, highlighting the crucial importance of inclusive, comprehensive and stable social protection systems that respond to differentiated needs across population and income groups, and that can be scaled up rapidly in times of crisis.

This Technical Note provides information on social protection measures for nationals and non-nationals, including refugees, of 21 countries in the MENA/ Arab States region.