Growth in sub-Saharan Africa has weakened after more than a decade of solid growth, although this overall outlook masks considerable variation across the region. Some countries have been negatively affected by falling prices of their main commodity exports. Oil-exporting countries, including...

The five Regional Economic Outlooks published biannually by the IMF cover Asia and Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Western Hemisphere. In each volume, recent economic developments and prospects for the region are discussed as a whole, as well as for...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes Jamaica’s experience of low growth despite consistently high investment rates. It suggests that the link between public debt and productivity is part of the answer to the puzzle. The paper considers Jamaica’s debt management strategy and its...

This Selected Issues paper aims at discussing the impact of the oil windfall on Chad, with a focus on growth, poverty, competitiveness, and fiscal policy challenges posed by the oil revenue outlook. The paper discusses the reforms needed to remove structural factors that constraints the non-oil...

The loss of trade preferences in textiles in 2005, the reform to the European Union’s sugar protocol for 2006–10, and higher international oil prices have brought about a permanent deterioration in Mauritius’s terms of trade. This 2007 Article IV Consultation highlights that...

This Selected Issues paper and Statistical Appendix for Netherlands Antilles examines the economic growth in Small Island Economies. The paper finds that the Small Island Economies as a group grew faster than the rest of the world during 1960–85. The paper analyzes whether Small Island...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes pace of economic growth for Brazil. Moderating activity and stubbornly elevated inflation since 2010 have led to a reevaluation of Brazil’s long-term potential growth rate. Growth accounting suggests that potential growth is probably lower than was...

This Selected Issues paper analyzes the income dispersion and comovement in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union region. It finds that incomes are diverging, with the Leeward Islands converging to a higher income level than the Windward Islands. The paper examines the macroeconomic impact of...

This report focuses on IMF Technical Assistance Evaluation—Public Expenditure Management (PEM) Reform in Selected African Countries. Most of the countries examined were colonies of the United Kingdom, inheriting similar and relatively simple budget systems based on an interpretation of the...