This paper tries to examine how the COVID-19 shock affects different countries through their regional integration and their exposure to Global Value Chains (GVCs).
The main findings show that, first, most of the countries have relatively larger backward GVC linkages than forward ones.
Second, on the northern shore of the Mediterranean, Italy and France are net suppliers of value added since they produce more value-added absorbed abroad than the foreign value-added they consume.
Third, on the Southern shore, Tunisia is the most integrated in GVCs but is also a net consumer of foreign value added. Morocco participates in GVCs but mainly in upstream segments. In contrast, Jordan followed by Egypt, are less involved in GVCs.
Fourth, the results also highlight the limited integration between Southern shore partners, whose integration is almost completely driven by linkages with Southern European developed countries. This is why Jordan is much less affected by the shock than Tunisia and Morocco.