mmekouar


Merouan Mekouar

Photo of Merouan Mekouar

Associate Professor
International Development Studies (IDS)

Office: 323 Founders College
Phone: 416 736 2100 Ext: 22739
Email: mmekouar@yorku.ca

Media Requests Welcome
Accepting New Graduate Students


I am Associate Professor in the Department of Social Science at York University, Canada. I completed my PhD in Political Science at McGill University in May 2013. Most of my writing has focused on social movements, authoritarianism and democratization in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), as well as the diffusion of social norms. My latest book titled "New Authoritarian Practices in the Middle East and North Africa" was published with Edinburgh University Press in 2022. I am also currently working on a SSHRC-funded co-edited book on the challenges that native scholars face while conducting research in repressive or illiberal countries (forthcoming with Oxford University Press in 2024) as well as a special issue on the impact of the Covid pandemic on the countries of the Maghreb.

I have received numerous awards and grants including the Abner Kingman Fellowship, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Grant, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Connection Grant, SSHRC Small Fund, York University Faculty Association Teaching Grant and the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies Seed Grant among others. I also present a bi-weekly TV segment at Radio-Canada (ICI-Ontario) where I discuss current issues relevant to the MENA region and Sub-Saharan Africa.

My research is located at the intersection of Middle East Studies, Political Economy, and Norm Diffusion. I am particularly interested in the micro-changes in the economic and cultural fabric of MENA societies as well as the responses of local regimes to these changes. I am accepting graduate students working on norm diffusion, state-society relations, social movements, as well as the political economy of the MENA region.

More...

Degrees

Ph.D, Political Science, McGill
MA, Political Science, McGill
BA, Political Science, Université de Montréal

Appointments

Faculty of Graduate Studies

Professional Leadership

Op-eds and media interviews for: Jadaliyya (2022), TRT World (2022), Libération (2020), Radio-Canada (2018, 19), The Economist (2016, 18), De Volkskrant (2019), Deustche Welle (2018), The Washington Post (2014, 15, 16, 17), Project of Middle East Political Science Podcasts (2016), CTV (2013), CP-24 (2013), V-Télé (2011), Foreign Policy (2010), El-Watan (2017), Lakome (2018, 2020), Yabiladi (2020).

Community Contributions

YUFA Steward Department of Social Science (2023-2026)
Secretary-General for the Rabat Social Science Institute (2019-2021)
Board Member, Green Campus Co-op (2014-2017)

Research Interests

Politics and Government , International Relations, International Development
  • SSHRC Connexion Grant - 2022-24
  • SSHRC Connexion Grant *ranked first. - 2020-22
  • German Academic Exchange Service - 2018
Books

Publication
Year

Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds. 2023. Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Non- Democratic States. Oxford University Press. (forthcoming)

2024

Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta. eds. 2022. "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa". Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. Protest and Mass Mobilization: Authoritarian Collapse and Political Change in North Africa. London and New York: Routledge.

2016

Book Chapters

Publication
Year

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Exploitation and Unequal Relationships" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Gender and Societal Expectations" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Introduction" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Legal and Penal Threats" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Native Researchers Between Opportunities and Constraints" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Race, Ethnicity and Belonging" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta. 2022 “New Authoritarian Practices in the MENA Region: Key Developments and Trends” in Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta (eds.) "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa" Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Islam Derradji and Merouan Mekouar. 2022 "Maintaining Order in Algeria: Upgrading Repressive Practices Under a Hybrid Regime" in Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta (eds.) "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa" Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan. 2022. “Morocco in Historical and Comparative Perspective” in Markus Porsche-Ludwig and Ying-Yu Chen ed. Handbook on Near and Middle East States. Lit Verlag.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan (with Jean Zaganiaris in equal authorship). 2019. “Sitting at the Crossroads: Sexual Minorities in the Middle East” in Paul Rowe ed. The Routledge Handbook on Middle Eastern Minorities.

2019

Mekouar, Merouan. 2013. “Morocco” in Paul Amar and Vijay Prashad, eds. Dispatches from the Arab World. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.135-156.

2013

Mekouar, Merouan (with Rex Brynen). 2013. "North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia," in Rex Brynen, Pete Moore, Bassel Salloukh, and Marie-Joelle Zahar, Beyond the Arab Spring: Authoritarianism and Democratization in the Arab World. Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers. 17-40.

2013

Mekouar, Merouan. 2011. “Aux origines de la stratégie du statu quo: Lectures dans la politique saharienne de l’Algérie”. In Centre d’Études Internationales, ed., Maroc-Algérie: Analyses croisées d’un voisinage hostile. Paris: Karthala. 29-39.

2011

Journal Articles

Publication
Year

Mekouar, Merouan. 2018. “Beyond the Model Reform Image: Morocco’s Risky Politics of Elite Cooptation” GiGA Focus Series.

2018

Mekouar, Merouan. 2017. “Police Collapse in Authoritarian Regimes: Lessons from Tunisia” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 1-29.

2017

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. “International Social Agents and Norm Diffusion: The Case of LGBTQ Rights in Morocco” in Marc Lynch (ed.) Transnational Diffusion and Cooperation in the Middle East. The Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS) Studies, Vol. 21: 62-65.

2016

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014. “No Political Agents, No Diffusion: Evidence from North Africa” International Studies Review 16(2): 206-216.

2014

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014 “What really made the Arab uprisings contagious?” in Marc Lynch (ed.) Transnational Diffusion and Cooperation in the Middle East. The Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS) Studies, Vol. 21: 24-26.

2014

Public Lectures

Publication
Year

“De lange arm van Rabat: Moroccan Authoritarianism in Internal and External Perspectives”. De Balie. Amsterdam. September 2019.

2019

Other

Publication
Year

Mekouar, Merouan. 2020. May 4th. “Au Maroc, la crise sanitaire au service de l’autoritarisme”. Libération https://cutt.ly/8ykjPjn

2020

Mekouar, Merouan. 2017. June 5th. “Morocco’s protestors show no sign of letting up. Will their movement spread?” The Washington post

2017

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. March 24th. “How cronyism and lack of accountability are holding Morocco back” The Washington post.

2016

Mekouar, Merouan. 2015, April 8th. “What changes to Morocco’s laws could mean for opposition groups” The Washington Post

2015

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014, June 13th. “What really made the Arab uprisings contagious?” The Washington Post

2014

Mekouar, Merouan. 2011, August 8th. “The Last Moroccan King?” OpenDemocracy.

2011

Mekouar, Merouan. 2010, November 28th. "Harper et les Arabes." Les Cahiers du Cérium. Available in Les Cahiers du Cérium.

2010

Mekouar, Merouan. 2010, August 27th. "Morocco's Burgeoning Musical Scene." The Middle East Channel | Foreign Policy.

2010


Current Courses

Term Course Number Section Title Type
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1009 6.0 A Introduction to Social Science (ESL) ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1009 6.0 B Introduction to Social Science (ESL) ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1000 6.0 A Introduction to Social Science ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1000 6.0 B Introduction to Social Science ONLN



I am Associate Professor in the Department of Social Science at York University, Canada. I completed my PhD in Political Science at McGill University in May 2013. Most of my writing has focused on social movements, authoritarianism and democratization in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), as well as the diffusion of social norms. My latest book titled "New Authoritarian Practices in the Middle East and North Africa" was published with Edinburgh University Press in 2022. I am also currently working on a SSHRC-funded co-edited book on the challenges that native scholars face while conducting research in repressive or illiberal countries (forthcoming with Oxford University Press in 2024) as well as a special issue on the impact of the Covid pandemic on the countries of the Maghreb.

I have received numerous awards and grants including the Abner Kingman Fellowship, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Grant, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Connection Grant, SSHRC Small Fund, York University Faculty Association Teaching Grant and the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies Seed Grant among others. I also present a bi-weekly TV segment at Radio-Canada (ICI-Ontario) where I discuss current issues relevant to the MENA region and Sub-Saharan Africa.

My research is located at the intersection of Middle East Studies, Political Economy, and Norm Diffusion. I am particularly interested in the micro-changes in the economic and cultural fabric of MENA societies as well as the responses of local regimes to these changes. I am accepting graduate students working on norm diffusion, state-society relations, social movements, as well as the political economy of the MENA region.

Degrees

Ph.D, Political Science, McGill
MA, Political Science, McGill
BA, Political Science, Université de Montréal

Appointments

Faculty of Graduate Studies

Professional Leadership

Op-eds and media interviews for: Jadaliyya (2022), TRT World (2022), Libération (2020), Radio-Canada (2018, 19), The Economist (2016, 18), De Volkskrant (2019), Deustche Welle (2018), The Washington Post (2014, 15, 16, 17), Project of Middle East Political Science Podcasts (2016), CTV (2013), CP-24 (2013), V-Télé (2011), Foreign Policy (2010), El-Watan (2017), Lakome (2018, 2020), Yabiladi (2020).

Community Contributions

YUFA Steward Department of Social Science (2023-2026)
Secretary-General for the Rabat Social Science Institute (2019-2021)
Board Member, Green Campus Co-op (2014-2017)

Research Interests

Politics and Government , International Relations, International Development

Awards

  • SSHRC Connexion Grant - 2022-24
  • SSHRC Connexion Grant *ranked first. - 2020-22
  • German Academic Exchange Service - 2018

All Publications


Book Chapters

Publication
Year

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Exploitation and Unequal Relationships" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Gender and Societal Expectations" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Introduction" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Legal and Penal Threats" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Native Researchers Between Opportunities and Constraints" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

(Forthcoming). Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar. 2024. "Race, Ethnicity and Belonging" in Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds., Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. Oxford University Press.

2024

Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta. 2022 “New Authoritarian Practices in the MENA Region: Key Developments and Trends” in Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta (eds.) "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa" Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Islam Derradji and Merouan Mekouar. 2022 "Maintaining Order in Algeria: Upgrading Repressive Practices Under a Hybrid Regime" in Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta (eds.) "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa" Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan. 2022. “Morocco in Historical and Comparative Perspective” in Markus Porsche-Ludwig and Ying-Yu Chen ed. Handbook on Near and Middle East States. Lit Verlag.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan (with Jean Zaganiaris in equal authorship). 2019. “Sitting at the Crossroads: Sexual Minorities in the Middle East” in Paul Rowe ed. The Routledge Handbook on Middle Eastern Minorities.

2019

Mekouar, Merouan. 2013. “Morocco” in Paul Amar and Vijay Prashad, eds. Dispatches from the Arab World. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.135-156.

2013

Mekouar, Merouan (with Rex Brynen). 2013. "North Africa: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia," in Rex Brynen, Pete Moore, Bassel Salloukh, and Marie-Joelle Zahar, Beyond the Arab Spring: Authoritarianism and Democratization in the Arab World. Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers. 17-40.

2013

Mekouar, Merouan. 2011. “Aux origines de la stratégie du statu quo: Lectures dans la politique saharienne de l’Algérie”. In Centre d’Études Internationales, ed., Maroc-Algérie: Analyses croisées d’un voisinage hostile. Paris: Karthala. 29-39.

2011

Books

Publication
Year

Kira Jumet and Merouan Mekouar eds. 2023. Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Non- Democratic States. Oxford University Press. (forthcoming)

2024

Ozgun Topak, Merouan Mekouar and Francesco Cavatorta. eds. 2022. "New Authoritarian Practices: State Control in the Middle East and North Africa". Edinburgh University Press.

2022

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. Protest and Mass Mobilization: Authoritarian Collapse and Political Change in North Africa. London and New York: Routledge.

2016

Journal Articles

Publication
Year

Mekouar, Merouan. 2018. “Beyond the Model Reform Image: Morocco’s Risky Politics of Elite Cooptation” GiGA Focus Series.

2018

Mekouar, Merouan. 2017. “Police Collapse in Authoritarian Regimes: Lessons from Tunisia” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 1-29.

2017

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. “International Social Agents and Norm Diffusion: The Case of LGBTQ Rights in Morocco” in Marc Lynch (ed.) Transnational Diffusion and Cooperation in the Middle East. The Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS) Studies, Vol. 21: 62-65.

2016

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014. “No Political Agents, No Diffusion: Evidence from North Africa” International Studies Review 16(2): 206-216.

2014

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014 “What really made the Arab uprisings contagious?” in Marc Lynch (ed.) Transnational Diffusion and Cooperation in the Middle East. The Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS) Studies, Vol. 21: 24-26.

2014

Public Lectures

Publication
Year

“De lange arm van Rabat: Moroccan Authoritarianism in Internal and External Perspectives”. De Balie. Amsterdam. September 2019.

2019

Other

Publication
Year

Mekouar, Merouan. 2020. May 4th. “Au Maroc, la crise sanitaire au service de l’autoritarisme”. Libération https://cutt.ly/8ykjPjn

2020

Mekouar, Merouan. 2017. June 5th. “Morocco’s protestors show no sign of letting up. Will their movement spread?” The Washington post

2017

Mekouar, Merouan. 2016. March 24th. “How cronyism and lack of accountability are holding Morocco back” The Washington post.

2016

Mekouar, Merouan. 2015, April 8th. “What changes to Morocco’s laws could mean for opposition groups” The Washington Post

2015

Mekouar, Merouan. 2014, June 13th. “What really made the Arab uprisings contagious?” The Washington Post

2014

Mekouar, Merouan. 2011, August 8th. “The Last Moroccan King?” OpenDemocracy.

2011

Mekouar, Merouan. 2010, November 28th. "Harper et les Arabes." Les Cahiers du Cérium. Available in Les Cahiers du Cérium.

2010

Mekouar, Merouan. 2010, August 27th. "Morocco's Burgeoning Musical Scene." The Middle East Channel | Foreign Policy.

2010


Current Courses

Term Course Number Section Title Type
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1009 6.0 A Introduction to Social Science (ESL) ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1009 6.0 B Introduction to Social Science (ESL) ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1000 6.0 A Introduction to Social Science ONLN
Fall/Winter 2023 AP/SOSC1000 6.0 B Introduction to Social Science ONLN