IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/imf/imfwpa/2011-172.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Fiscal Policy Implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Victor Duarte Lledo
  • Mr. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro

Abstract

This paper investigates economic, political, and institutional constraints to fiscal policy implementation in sub-saharan Africa. We find that planned fiscal adjustments or expansions are less likely to be implemented the larger they are, the more inaccurate the growth forecasts they are based on, the more fragile the regulatory system in the country, and the weaker the institutions framing the design, approval, and execution of the budget. The findings support ongoing efforts in the region to improve the quality and timeliness of economic data; enhance forecasting capacity; adopt realistic fiscal plans; and strengthen governance, budgetary institutions, and public financial management procedures.

Suggested Citation

  • Victor Duarte Lledo & Mr. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro, 2011. "Fiscal Policy Implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa," IMF Working Papers 2011/172, International Monetary Fund.
  • Handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2011/172
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/cat/longres.aspx?sk=25081
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christopher F Baum & Mark E. Schaffer & Steven Stillman, 2003. "Instrumental variables and GMM: Estimation and testing," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 3(1), pages 1-31, March.
    2. Davide Furceri & Sinem Kiliç Çelik & Marcos Poplawski-Ribeiro, 2016. "Government Consumption Volatility and the Size of Nations," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 72(2), pages 211-228, June.
    3. Stephen Bond & Anke Hoeffler & Jonathan Temple, 2001. "GMM Estimation of Empirical Growth Models," Economics Papers 2001-W21, Economics Group, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
    4. Mr. Jan Kees Martijn & Markus Berndt & Abu Shonchoy & Mr. Paolo Dudine, 2008. "The Spending and Absorption of Aid in PRGF Supported Programs," IMF Working Papers 2008/237, International Monetary Fund.
    5. Christian Ebeke & Helene Ehrhart, 2012. "Tax Revenue Instability in Sub-Saharan Africa: Consequences and Remedies," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 21(1), pages 1-27, January.
    6. David Roodman, 2009. "How to do xtabond2: An introduction to difference and system GMM in Stata," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 9(1), pages 86-136, March.
    7. Victor D. Lledó & Irene Yackovlev & Lucie Gadenne, 2011. "A Tale of Cyclicality, Aid Flows and Debt: Government Spending in Sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 20(5), pages 823-849, November.
    8. Mr. Marc G Quintyn & Sophia Gollwitzer, 2010. "The Effectiveness of Macroeconomic Commitment in Weak(er) Institutional Environments," IMF Working Papers 2010/193, International Monetary Fund.
    9. Teresa Leal & Javier J. Pérez & Mika Tujula & Jean-Pierre Vidal, 2008. "Fiscal Forecasting: Lessons from the Literature and Challenges," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 29(3), pages 347-386, September.
    10. Feeny, Simon & McGillivray, Mark, 2010. "Aid and public sector fiscal behaviour in failing states," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 1006-1016, September.
    11. Gösta Ljungman, 2009. "Top-Down Budgeting—An Instrument to Strengthen Budget Management," IMF Working Papers 2009/243, International Monetary Fund.
    12. Athanasios Orphanides, 2001. "Monetary Policy Rules Based on Real-Time Data," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(4), pages 964-985, September.
    13. Dani Rodrik, 1998. "Why Do More Open Economies Have Bigger Governments?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(5), pages 997-1032, October.
    14. Mr. Richard I Allen, 2009. "The Challenge of Reforming Budgetary Institutions in Developing Countries," IMF Working Papers 2009/096, International Monetary Fund.
    15. Rolf Strauch & Mark Hallerberg & Jürgen von Hagen, 2004. "Budgetary Forecasts in Europe – The Track Record of Stability and Convergence Programmes," Economic Working Papers at Centro de Estudios Andaluces E2004/42, Centro de Estudios Andaluces.
    16. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    17. Alesina, Alberto & Hausmann, Ricardo & Hommes, Rudolf & Stein, Ernesto, 1999. "Budget institutions and fiscal performance in Latin America," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(2), pages 253-273, August.
    18. Giuliodori, Massimo & Beetsma, Roel, 2008. "On the relationship between fiscal plans in the European Union: An empirical analysis based on real-time data," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 221-242, June.
    19. Carlos Caceres & Marcos Poplawski-Ribeiro & Darlena Tartari, 2013. "Inflation Dynamics in the CEMAC Region," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 22(2), pages 239-275, March.
    20. David Dollar & Craig Burnside, 2000. "Aid, Policies, and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(4), pages 847-868, September.
    21. Matt Andrews, 2010. "How Far Have Public Financial Management Reforms Come in Africa?," CID Working Papers 208, Center for International Development at Harvard University.
    22. Ethan Ilzetzki & Carlos A. Vegh, 2008. "Procyclical Fiscal Policy in Developing Countries: Truth or Fiction?," NBER Working Papers 14191, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    23. John M. Kim & Chung-Keun Park, 2006. "Top-down Budgeting as a Tool for Central Resource Management," OECD Journal on Budgeting, OECD Publishing, vol. 6(1), pages 87-125.
    24. Mario Mansour & Mr. Michael Keen, 2009. "Revenue Mobilization in Sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges from Globalization," IMF Working Papers 2009/157, International Monetary Fund.
    25. David Roodman, 2009. "A Note on the Theme of Too Many Instruments," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 71(1), pages 135-158, February.
    26. David Roodman, 2006. "How to Do xtabond2," North American Stata Users' Group Meetings 2006 8, Stata Users Group.
    27. Rajkumar, Andrew Sunil & Swaroop, Vinaya, 2008. "Public spending and outcomes: Does governance matter?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(1), pages 96-111, April.
    28. Sophia Gollwitzer, 2011. "Budget Institutions and Fiscal Performance in Africa," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 20(1), pages 111-152, January.
    29. Jacopo Cimadomo, 2012. "Fiscal Policy in Real Time," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 114(2), pages 440-465, June.
    30. Carmignani, Fabrizio, 2010. "Cyclical fiscal policy in Africa," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 254-267, March.
    31. Auerbach, Alan J, 1995. "Tax Projections and the Budget: Lessons from the 1980's," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(2), pages 165-169, May.
    32. Douglass C. North & John Joseph Wallis & Barry R. Weingast, 2006. "A Conceptual Framework for Interpreting Recorded Human History," NBER Working Papers 12795, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    33. Alfredo Baldini & Marcos Poplawski-Ribeiro, 2011. "Fiscal and Monetary Determinants of Inflation in Low-Income Countries: Theory and Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa-super- †," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 20(3), pages 419-462, June.
    34. Ezequiel Cabezon & Mr. Tej Prakash, 2008. "Public Financial Management and Fiscal Outcomes in Sub-Saharan African Heavily-Indebted Poor Countries," IMF Working Papers 2008/217, International Monetary Fund.
    35. Peterson, Stephen Bovard, 2010. "Reforming Public Financial Management in Africa," Scholarly Articles 4669673, Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
    36. Ale Bulir & A. Javier Hamann, 2003. "Aid Volatility: An Empirical Assessment," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 50(1), pages 1-4.
    37. Gomez-Puig, Marta, 2006. "Size matters for liquidity: Evidence from EMU sovereign yield spreads," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 90(2), pages 156-162, February.
    38. Hauner, David & Kyobe, Annette, 2010. "Determinants of Government Efficiency," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(11), pages 1527-1542, November.
    39. John Lewis, 2013. "Fiscal policy in Central and Eastern Europe with real time data: cyclicality, inertia and the role of EU accession," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(23), pages 3347-3359, August.
    40. Sophia Gollwitzer, 2010. "Budget Institutions and Fiscal Performance in Africa," Discussion Papers 10/02, University of Nottingham, CREDIT.
    41. Roel Beetsma & Massimo Giuliodori & Peter Wierts, 2009. "Planning to cheat: EU fiscal policy in real time [‘What do we really know about fiscal sustainability in the EU?’]," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 24(60), pages 753-804.
    42. Andrews, Matt, 2010. "How Far Have Public Financial Management Reforms Come in Africa?," Working Paper Series rwp10-018, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    43. Furceri, Davide & Karras, Georgios, 2007. "Country size and business cycle volatility: Scale really matters," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 21(4), pages 424-434, December.
    44. Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart & Mastruzzi, Massimo, 2010. "The worldwide governance indicators : methodology and analytical issues," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5430, The World Bank.
    45. Sophia Gollwitzer & Eteri Kvintradze & Mr. Tej Prakash & Luis-Felipe Zanna & Ms. Era Dabla-Norris & Mr. Richard I Allen & Irene Yackovlev & Victor Duarte Lledo, 2010. "Budget Institutions and Fiscal Performance in Low-Income Countries," IMF Working Papers 2010/080, International Monetary Fund.
    46. Ms. Anja Baum & Mr. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro & Miss Anke Weber, 2012. "Fiscal Multipliers and the State of the Economy," IMF Working Papers 2012/286, International Monetary Fund.
    47. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro, 2009. "New Evidence on the Effectiveness of Europe's Fiscal Restrictions," Working Papers 2009-13, CEPII research center.
    48. John Lewis, 2013. "Fiscal policy in Central and Eastern Europe with real time data: cyclicality, inertia and the role of EU accession," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(23), pages 3347-3359, August.
    49. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro & Mauricio Villafuerte & Thomas Baunsgaard & Christine J. Richmond, 2012. "Fiscal Frameworks for Resource Rich Developing Countries," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 12/04, International Monetary Fund.
    50. Ms. Lusine Lusinyan & Aliona Cebotari & Ricardo Velloso & Mr. Jeffrey M. Davis & Mr. Amine Mati & Murray Petrie & Mr. Paolo Mauro, 2009. "Fiscal Risks: Sources, Disclosure, and Management," IMF Departmental Papers / Policy Papers 2009/001, International Monetary Fund.
    51. Mr. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro & Jan-Christoph Rülke, 2011. "Fiscal Expectations Under the Stability and Growth Pact: Evidence from Survey Data," IMF Working Papers 2011/048, International Monetary Fund.
    52. Andrews, Matthew R., 2010. "How Far Have Public Financial Management Reforms Come in Africa?," Scholarly Articles 4448885, Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
    53. Gang, Ira N., 1993. "Reply to Tran-Nam Binh and Mark McGillivray, 'foreign aid, taxes and public investment: A comment'," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 177-178, June.
    54. Mr. Marcos Poplawski Ribeiro & Mr. Mauricio Villafuerte & Mr. Thomas Baunsgaard & Christine J. Richmond, 2012. "Fiscal Frameworks for Resource Rich Developing Countries," IMF Staff Discussion Notes 2012/004, International Monetary Fund.
    55. Binh, Tran-Nam & McGillivray, Mark, 1993. "Foreign aid, taxes and public investment A comment," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 173-176, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Carlos Caceres & Marcos Poplawski-Ribeiro & Darlena Tartari, 2013. "Inflation Dynamics in the CEMAC Region," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 22(2), pages 239-275, March.
    2. Ernesto Crivelli & Mr. Sanjeev Gupta, 2014. "Does conditionality in IMF-supported programs promote revenue reform?," IMF Working Papers 2014/206, International Monetary Fund.
    3. Okwoche Princewill U. & Iheonu Chimere O., 2021. "Determinants of fiscal effort in sub-Saharan African countries: Does conflict matter?," Economics and Business Review, Sciendo, vol. 7(2), pages 50-73, June.
    4. Oliver Morrissey & Christian Von Haldenwang & Armin Von Schiller & Maksym Ivanyna & Ingo Bordon, 2016. "Tax Revenue Performance and Vulnerability in Developing Countries," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(12), pages 1689-1703, December.
    5. Daniel Dramani Kipo-Sunyehzi, 2023. "Implementation Research in Developed and Developing Countries: an Analysis of the Trends and Directions," Public Organization Review, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 1259-1273, September.
    6. Jacopo Cimadomo, 2016. "Real-Time Data And Fiscal Policy Analysis: A Survey Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(2), pages 302-326, April.
    7. Vasconcelos de Deus, Joseph David Barroso & de Mendonça, Helder Ferreira, 2017. "Fiscal forecasting performance in an emerging economy: An empirical assessment of Brazil," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 408-419.
    8. Fadia Al Hajj & Gilles Dufrénot & Kimiko Sugimoto & Romain Wolf, 2015. "Reactions to Shocks and Monetary Policy Regimes: Inflation Targeting Versus Flexible Currency Board in Sub-Saharan Africa," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 53(4), pages 237-271, December.
    9. Cormier, Benjamin, 2021. "Interests over institutions: political-economic constraints on public debt management in developing countries," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 112595, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    10. Ley, Eduardo & Misch, Florian, 2013. "Real-time macro monitoring and fiscal policy," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6303, The World Bank.
    11. Mr. Sampawende J Tapsoba & Mr. Robert C York & Neree C.G.M. Noumon, 2016. "Can Statistical Capacity Building Help Reduce Procyclical Fiscal Policy in Developing Countries?," IMF Working Papers 2016/209, International Monetary Fund.
    12. Fadia Al Hajj & Gilles Dufr??not, & Kimiko Sugimoto & Romain Wolf, 2013. "Reactions to Shocks and Monetary Policy Regimes: Inflation Targeting Versus Flexible Currency Board in Ghana, South Africa and the WAEMU," William Davidson Institute Working Papers Series wp1062, William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan.
    13. Agenor, P.-R., 1997. "Capital-Market Imperfections and the Macroeconomic Dynamics of Small Indebted Economies," Princeton Studies in International Economics 82, International Economics Section, Departement of Economics Princeton University,.
    14. Araujo, Juliana D. & Li, Bin Grace & Poplawski-Ribeiro, Marcos & Zanna, Luis-Felipe, 2016. "Current account norms in natural resource rich and capital scarce economies," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 144-156.
    15. William Irungu Nganga & Julien Chevallier & Simon Wagura Ndiritu, 2018. "Regime changes and fiscal sustainability in Kenya with comparative nonlinear Granger causalities across East-African countries," Working Papers halshs-01941226, HAL.
    16. Irungu, William Nganga & Chevallier, Julien & Ndiritu, Simon Wagura, 2020. "Regime changes and fiscal sustainability in Kenya," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 1-9.
    17. Wirginia Doryñ & Micha³ Mackiewicz & Dorota Wawrzyniak, 2018. "The Role of Institutions in Determining the Cyclical Behavior of Fiscal Policy," Lodz Economics Working Papers 2/2018, University of Lodz, Faculty of Economics and Sociology.
    18. Joseph David Barroso Vasconcelos de Deus & Helder Ferreira de Mendonça, 2015. "Empirical evidence on fiscal forecasting in Eurozone countries," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(5), pages 838-860, October.
    19. Itchoko motande Mondjeli mwa ndjokou, 2017. "Institutions and pro-cyclicality of fiscal policy in Sub Saharan Africa," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 37(2), pages 1365-1380.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Joseph David Barroso Vasconcelos de Deus & Helder Ferreira de Mendonça, 2015. "Empirical evidence on fiscal forecasting in Eurozone countries," Journal of Economic Studies, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 42(5), pages 838-860, October.
    2. Jacopo Cimadomo, 2016. "Real-Time Data And Fiscal Policy Analysis: A Survey Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(2), pages 302-326, April.
    3. Sèna Kimm Gnangnon, 2022. "Financial development and tax revenue in developing countries: investigating the international trade channel," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 1-26, January.
    4. Fisayo Fagbemi, 2020. "Assessing the Role of Governance in West African Fiscal Performance," The American Economist, Sage Publications, vol. 65(1), pages 97-122, March.
    5. Irene Yackovlev & Victor Duarte Lledo & Lucie Gadenne, 2009. "Cyclical Patterns of Government Expenditures in Sub-Saharan Africa: Facts and Factors," IMF Working Papers 2009/274, International Monetary Fund.
    6. de Mendonça, Helder Ferreira & Baca, Adriana Cabrera, 2022. "Fiscal opacity and reduction of income inequality through taxation: Effects on economic growth," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 69-82.
    7. Kathavate, Jay & Mallik, Girijasankar, 2012. "The impact of the Interaction between institutional quality and aid volatility on growth: theory and evidence," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 716-724.
    8. Sophia Gollwitzer & Eteri Kvintradze & Mr. Tej Prakash & Luis-Felipe Zanna & Ms. Era Dabla-Norris & Mr. Richard I Allen & Irene Yackovlev & Victor Duarte Lledo, 2010. "Budget Institutions and Fiscal Performance in Low-Income Countries," IMF Working Papers 2010/080, International Monetary Fund.
    9. Oto-Peralías, Daniel & Romero-Ávila, Diego & Usabiaga, Carlos, 2013. "Does fiscal decentralization mitigate the adverse effects of corruption on public deficits?," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 205-231.
    10. Mindaugas Butkus & Janina Seputiene, 2018. "Growth Effect of Public Debt: The Role of Government Effectiveness and Trade Balance," Economies, MDPI, vol. 6(4), pages 1-27, November.
    11. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2019. "Governance, capital flight and industrialisation in Africa," Journal of Economic Structures, Springer;Pan-Pacific Association of Input-Output Studies (PAPAIOS), vol. 8(1), pages 1-22, December.
    12. Zheng, Xinye & Li, Fanghua & Song, Shunfeng & Yu, Yihua, 2013. "Central government's infrastructure investment across Chinese regions: A dynamic spatial panel data approach," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 264-276.
    13. Potrafke, Niklas, 2013. "Globalization and labor market institutions: International empirical evidence," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 829-842.
    14. Kimura, Hidemi & Mori, Yuko & Sawada, Yasuyuki, 2012. "Aid Proliferation and Economic Growth: A Cross-Country Analysis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 1-10.
    15. Tapsoba, René, 2012. "Do National Numerical Fiscal Rules really shape fiscal behaviours in developing countries? A treatment effect evaluation," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 1356-1369.
    16. Luisa Corrado & Roberta Distante & Majlinda Joxhe, 2019. "Body mass index and social interactions from adolescence to adulthood," Spatial Economic Analysis, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(4), pages 425-445, October.
    17. Asongu, Simplice A. & Nwachukwu, Jacinta C., 2016. "The role of governance in mobile phones for inclusive human development in Sub-Saharan Africa," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 55, pages 1-13.
    18. Harald Oberhofer & Marian Schwinner, 2017. "Do Individual Salaries Depend On the Performance of the Peers? Prototype Heuristic and Wage Bargaining in the NBA," WIFO Working Papers 534, WIFO.
    19. Belke, Ansgar & Potrafke, Niklas, 2012. "Does government ideology matter in monetary policy? A panel data analysis for OECD countries," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 1126-1139.
    20. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2021. "Income Levels, Governance and Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 16(1), pages 71-103, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2011/172. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Akshay Modi (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/imfffus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.