This selected issues paper provides background on evolution, highlight the rationale behind the key changes, describe the most important extensions and their implications, and to then present several policy applications, which played a part in informing the 2023 Article IV discussions with the...

This paper presents Côte d'Ivoire's poverty reduction and growth strategy. The macroeconomic framework has been sound, with low inflation, a sustainable public sector, a robust banking system and a balanced external position. Poverty in Côte d'Ivoire has been steadily decreasing since 2016,...

This paper on Benin highlights poverty reduction and growth strategy. The National Development Plan (PND) is designed to specify the strategic benchmarks for development activities for the eight-year period until 2025, the target date for the implementation and completion of the Vision. The...

Global growth is projected to stay at 3.1 percent in 2024 and rise to 3.2 percent in 2025. Elevated central bank rates to fight inflation and a withdrawal of fiscal support amid high debt weigh on economic activity. Inflation is falling faster than expected in most regions, amid unwinding...

Reliable national accounts are essential for proper economic analyses and informed policymaking by national authorities as well as other stakeholders. Nevertheless, in many countries, national accounts statistics are subject to serious shortcomings, which are often manifested as overestimated...

This paper studies how output fluctuations in Russia are transmitted internationally. Using vector autoregression (VAR) and dynamic panel models, the paper finds that Russia's output fluctuations are an important driver of output fluctuations of countries in the region, especially for oil...

On the occasion of the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings' return to the African continent after 50 years-specifically to Marrakech, Morocco-this Special Issue on Africa discusses economic developments for the entire continent. After four years of crises and at the close of another difficult year,...

After a stronger-than-expected recovery from the pandemic and continued resilience in early 2023, economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is softening as the effect of tighter policies to combat inflation is taking hold and the external environment is weakening. The early and...

This Selected Issues paper discusses reforming the state-owned enterprises (SOE) sector in Botswana. The authorities are committed to diversifying the economy and growing the relative size of the private sector but, until now, progress has been limited. Compared to other emerging markets, SOEs...

Tourism is an important driver of Dominica's economy. The damage of the pandemic on Dominica's tourism sector was severer than in most regional peers, and the recovery has also been much slower, mostly due to the timing of lockdown restrictions. This paper reviews the tourism sector landscape in...