A construction worker cuts steel at an old building being demolished at Al-Ashar market in Basra on October 19, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar this month, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by HUSSEIN FALEH / AFP via Getty Images)

A woman searches through a pile of second-hand clothes for sale at Al-Ashar market in Basra on October 19, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar this month, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images)

A man pushes a cart at Al-Ashar market in Basra on October 19, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar this month, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images)

A man pushes a cart at Al-Ashar market in Basra on October 19, 2026. Iraq's central bank devalued the dinar currency against the dollar this month, with the country facing a deepening crisis brought on by the Middle East war. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images)

Zeine Zeidane, Director of the African Department at the IMF, poses for a portrait in the atrium of the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington, DC, on October 7, 2026. The International Monetary Fund on October 15 upgraded its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 4.5 percent this year, with the organization's regional director welcoming countries' resilience in the face of a succession of crises, including the US-Iran war. IMF Africa Director Zeine Zeidane told AFP that even though growth was resilient, it needed to increase to keep pace with other regions. "Our view is that per capita growth today remains quite weak," he told AFP at the Fund's headquarters in Washington. The former Mauritanian prime minister noted, however, that countries had broadly been able to maintain current growth rates -- even through multiple crises -- without jeopardizing their public finances, with debt-to-GDP ratios broadly declining in most countries. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images)

Zeine Zeidane, Director of the African Department at the IMF, speaks during an AFP interview at the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington, DC, on October 7, 2026. The International Monetary Fund on October 15 upgraded its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 4.5 percent this year, with the organization's regional director welcoming countries' resilience in the face of a succession of crises, including the US-Iran war. IMF Africa Director Zeine Zeidane told AFP that even though growth was resilient, it needed to increase to keep pace with other regions. "Our view is that per capita growth today remains quite weak," he told AFP at the Fund's headquarters in Washington. The former Mauritanian prime minister noted, however, that countries had broadly been able to maintain current growth rates -- even through multiple crises -- without jeopardizing their public finances, with debt-to-GDP ratios broadly declining in most countries. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images)

Zeine Zeidane, Director of the African Department at the IMF, poses for a portrait in the atrium of the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington, DC, on October 7, 2026. The International Monetary Fund on October 15 upgraded its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 4.5 percent this year, with the organization's regional director welcoming countries' resilience in the face of a succession of crises, including the US-Iran war. IMF Africa Director Zeine Zeidane told AFP that even though growth was resilient, it needed to increase to keep pace with other regions. "Our view is that per capita growth today remains quite weak," he told AFP at the Fund's headquarters in Washington. The former Mauritanian prime minister noted, however, that countries had broadly been able to maintain current growth rates -- even through multiple crises -- without jeopardizing their public finances, with debt-to-GDP ratios broadly declining in most countries. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images)

Zeine Zeidane, Director of the African Department at the IMF, looks on during an AFP interview at the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington, DC, on October 7, 2026. The International Monetary Fund on October 15 upgraded its growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 4.5 percent this year, with the organization's regional director welcoming countries' resilience in the face of a succession of crises, including the US-Iran war. IMF Africa Director Zeine Zeidane told AFP that even though growth was resilient, it needed to increase to keep pace with other regions. "Our view is that per capita growth today remains quite weak," he told AFP at the Fund's headquarters in Washington. The former Mauritanian prime minister noted, however, that countries had broadly been able to maintain current growth rates -- even through multiple crises -- without jeopardizing their public finances, with debt-to-GDP ratios broadly declining in most countries. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images)