Replication data and code for "The FDI–Growth Nexus: The Role of Institutional Development in MENA Countries"

Data, R code and output files that reproduce the tables and figures in Smolo (2026), “The FDI–Growth Nexus: The Role of Institutional Development in MENA Countries” (submitted to Future Business Journal). The package covers a balanced panel of 16 MENA economies, 2000–2023: the cleaned dataset (World Bank WDI and WGI data and constructed variables), a data dictionary and cleaning log, R scripts 1–6 with a master script (growth models with two-way fixed effects and Driscoll–Kraay inference, fixed-effects 2SLS, and robustness checks), the console logs and result files from the author’s run, and the formatted tables and figures. The Heritage Foundation Index of Economic Freedom is not redistributed because of the Foundation’s terms of use; README section 4 explains how to download it and merge it back with the supplied script. Includes data from the World Bank, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0). See README.md for instructions.