In this week’s Monday Briefing we observe a new wave of GenZ protests in Morocco. The US is stuck in Government Shutdown while Boko Haram makes gain in Nigeria. The Old Continent lags behind, losing competitiveness due to economic conservatism and AI technology.
Spotlight: Cars on fire off the shoulder of Atlas, Morocco’s Gen-Z takes the street.
The streets of Rabat, Marrakesh and Casablanca are transformed in human rivers, while millions of young Moroccans protest for a better future. For eight days in a row, the North African country has been facing unprecedented mass rallies and demonstrations, the causes of which go back to 2011 Arab Spring and the inherent inequality of Moroccan society, especially when it comes to younger generations. The leaderless movement is spearheaded by the online community GenZ212 (from the international prefix for this country) and it is calling for profound reforms in the fields of Education, Healthcare and Labor Market. Three protesters have lost their lives, while many others have been injured or arrested. Cars on fire off the shoulder of Atlas, as a new wave of GenZ protest ensues.
For the third time in a matter of few weeks, the world witnesses a mass protest movement led by the younger generation: in Nepal the government was forced to resign in early September, after days of mass demonstrations organized mainly on the social media Discord, while Madagascar is in a similar situation since last week. The common element is the mounting intergenerational inequality in these developing countries, where Generation Z represents demographically a strong part of the population. The causes are widely different, but it is no coincidence that the symbols used is all of these protests are similar, namely the One-Piece pirate flag.
The triggering event for this wave of demonstrations was the death of eight pregnant women in Agadir’s public hospital, but the root causes are much more complex. The Healthcare system is the main point of criticism, as Morocco has only 8 doctors per 10.000 people, a figure far below the WHO recommended 23. Another major issue is the Education System and the subsequent problem with unemployment, which among the younger generations accounts for 36% of the population, with 46% peaks in urban areas. The response of the government to these problems has been minimal: the most recent expenses have been the huge renovation works for the Africa Cup of Nations, held in the beginning of 2026, and the World Cup, in the summer of 2030. The millions spent on new football stadiums and facilities could have been allocated to healthcare or education, the protesters argue.
Many international observers have pointed out to the 2011 precedent: in the midst of the Arab Spring, the population of Morocco took the street as well, asking for democratization and socio-economical improvements. In that instance the King intervened and calmed the masses, by promising constitutional amendments and further democratization. These promises have not been realized in the last fourteen years, while the underlying problems continued to worsen. What will happen now is uncertain, as ever in these mass demonstrations: the will of the younger generation has been displayed more clearly than ever in this week of unrest, but the answer of the governing elite is yet to materialize completely. The fate of the Moroccan state lies in his monarchical regime and in its capacity to overcome this period of crisis.
World News
Thousands of Nigerians seek refuge in Cameroon after the rise of Boko Haram
by Riccardo De Ambrogi
In Nigeria, Thousands of people were forced to leave their houses and seek refuge in Cameroon after Boko Haram captured Kirawa, a city in the Borno State, the most tormented region in Nigeria.
On Thursday 2nd the city was attacked and conquered by the militants of Boko Haram, a jihadist group active in the north eastern part of Nigeria who became known by the public in 2015, due to the general fear of Islamist militant groups around the world, but that has been active for all these years and recently made the conflict re-escalate even if their territorial control is heavily reduced. Reportedly, more than 5,000 people have fled across the border into Cameroon to seek protection. Between these refugees there is also the District Head Abdulrahman Abubakar, whose palace was set on fire along with a military barracks and numerous houses, meaning that de facto the political authority of Kirawa is now in the hands of the terrorists. Furthermore, the residents are left alone in their fight against Boko Haram: a multinational military task force withdrew from the area after an attack in August, leaving local vigilantes as the only defense with the consequence of a weak and ill-equipped defensive line. The humanitarian crisis will probably grow in the next months, considering the power that terrorists are gaining, and if the Nigerian government won’t be able to quickly intervene, the situation is going to become worse and worse, from a humanitarian point of view, but also from a perspective of political stability.
U.S. Government Shutdown Continues
by Veronika Lizier-Zmudzinski
The U.S Government continues to stay shutdown as Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, are short votes in Senate to pass a budgeting bill. The government of the United States is structured so that all branches of government must agree on spending before it can be formally implemented. Although fair in theory, this mechanism leads to long delays in passing law, and sometimes, ultimately, a shutdown of the government.
Government Shutdowns aren’t uncommon (this is the 11th since 1980), especially for budget disputes but, nonetheless, they can often cause political turmoil and uncertainty, as the U.S economy could also be affected. The depth of the damage depends primarily on how much longer the shutdown continues. The longest recorded shutdown in U.S history was 35 days in 2018 — President Trump’s first term in office
As mentioned, shutdowns tend to halt economic growth. This is due to government employees and services not considered essential being stalled and/or temporarily put on unpaid leave. The reduction in thousands of salaries all over the country, can reduce percentage points of economic growth. If prolonged, the shutdown’s impact could ripple outward, affecting economies around the world.
European News
Europe lags behind as it follows economic conservatism
Economic dynamics exemplify, through non-verbal means, the plasticity of human behavior; the latter is forged by the decisional patterns of economic beings, whose on-paper rationality masks the scary thought of future unpredictability and may serve as a defense mechanism against the collapse of social structures. Put in perspective, Europe has been displaying the side effects of an overly adopted vigilant attitude, which risks evolving into economic stagnation and an– perhaps unvoluntary – rejection of innovation streams within its borders. Concerns indeed arise as European leaders look trapped in a limbo that reflects a broader avoidance of change and is even more significantly corroborated by a leniency towards risk aversion. Within a fast-paced economy that fosters the commercial competitiveness with both the US and China, being a saver can no longer be equated with financial sensibility.
Europe is perhaps suffering the noxious consequences of innovation lacking, as inscribed within the more troubling context of a trade war that portraits Europe as a victim to be casually found between the Western and Eastern poles, that benefit from Europe’s alleged inferiority. A failure to increase risk capital would mark Europe’s economic unsuccess as exemplified by the insufficient funding of start-up initiatives, crucially hampered by a historically cemented conservatism that challenges the boldness intrinsic to the economic policies of the US and China. Risk aversion is steering Europe towards a perilous path constellated by market inefficiencies, resulting in fewer societal benefits compared to the ones achievable under the undertaking of risk capital schemes.
Scaling up in terms of increased innovation entails mimicking the behavioral strategy showcased by leading global economies, by means of prioritizing risk capital and venture fund investment. Europe’s economic emancipation, along with the adoption of a more technological based approach, must disentangle emulation from personalization of innovation channels: if the European context were able to affirm its idiosyncratic way of making capital more risk-loving, it would then be deservingly entitled as the legitimate shaper of its own future, without any overly swaying influence of foreign superpowers.
Mind the tech gap: the EU on artificial intelligence
by Cristiana Murè
In an effort to mitigate the Union’s dependency on artificial intelligence systems from the United States and China, the European Commission is getting ready to introduce its new “Apply AI” strategy. The plan focuses less on developing new foundational models, and more on helping public administrations, SMEs, and research institutions applying existing AI tools safely and at scale. Under the proposal, the EU will launch a multi-billion-euro funding line under the Digital Europe and Horizon Europe programmes to promote open-source AI platforms, cloud access for startups, and sector-specific “AI sandboxes” in areas such as health, energy, and manufacturing. The initiative is also likely to be tied to the AI Act implementation to ensure alignment between compliance and ethical standards. As the EU spends billions annually on cloud and AI services sourced from U.S. tech giants, fostering European alternatives gives the chance to retain more value and data control. However, while trying to handle 27 fragmented digital markets, Europe would still trail global leaders if competitive scale and coordination were not achieved.
Every week, your TiL Monday Briefing 🗞: you better read it with a cup of coffee! ☕️
Head of the Monday Briefing column: Pietro Ferrari. Current writing staff: Vatsal Aggarwal, Cristiana Murè. Cartoons by Polina Mednikova. The Monday Briefing column was established in its current form in 2021 by Bojan Zeric.
I’m Veronika. I grew up in the US but am half-Italian, half-Polish. I’m a first-year BIEM student and am interested in not only economics, but fashion, politics, books, and getting to know the community around me.
I am currently completing a MSc in Economics and Management of Innovation and Technology at Bocconi University. Through writing, I try to analyze and comprehend the world around me, while also reflecting my interest for behavioral economics, philosophy, and physics. A deep curiosity motivates me to always explore different fields and consider various and contrasting perspectives.
