The staff report for the 2004 Article IV Consultation on the Kingdom of the Netherlands—Netherlands highlights the economic developments and policies. The economy is beginning to emerge from an extended downturn. Meanwhile, against a background of soft labor market conditions and economic...

This Selected Issues paper focuses on the fiscal challenge for Belgium in coping with population aging, including the sustainability of prevailing fiscal federalism arrangements across all levels of governments. The analysis demonstrates that the current strategy of upfront consolidation is...

Mali’s territorial integrity is threatened, questioning its internal capacity to face challenges and especially to ensure the physical safety of goods and individuals. The government is committed to implement all measures to overcome this situation. More specifically, it will increase...

Staff Report for the 2012 Article IV consultation, prepared by a staff team of the IMF, following discussions that ended on July 23, 2012, with the officials of Sudan on economic developments and policies. Based on information available at the time of these discussions, the staff report was...

The shift to a parliamentary democracy in 2010 provided an impetus for the Kyrgyz Republic to reform the economy. Despite the recent progress, the Kyrgyz Republic faces significant economic challenges, which will require actions on many fronts. Improving the business climate, governance, and...

Syria faces two interrelated medium-term challenges posed by the prospective decline in its oil reserves. The recently approved five-year plan (FYP) laid down a comprehensive strategy to address these challenges. Syria’s public finances are headed for challenging times in the coming...

Significant progress has been made in Haiti to safeguard macroeconomic stability after the January 2010 earthquake. However, the pace of the reconstruction has been slow and the business environment remains unattractive. Further development and strengthening social safety nets are essential. The...

El Salvador’s 2008 Article IV Consultation examines the country's economic developments and policies. In 2007, the fiscal position improved, the public debt-to-GDP ratio declined, and economic growth reached its highest level in a decade. The rise in global commodity prices has also...

Spain showed strong growth performance marked by robust job creation and a solid fiscal position. Executive Directors supported the National Reform Program (NRP), which focuses on improving productivity, market flexibility, and competitiveness. They commended the appreciable fiscal surplus,...