Senegal achieved robust economic growth and low inflation under the economic program. Executive Directors emphasized the need to correct slippages in fiscal governance and transparency to ensure budgetary discipline and strengthen procurement rules and practices. They appreciated the action plan...

This 2008 Article IV Consultation highlights that Djibouti’s macroeconomic performance improved significantly, but inflation pressures are intensifying. Real GDP growth accelerated to 5.3 percent in 2007, driven mainly by foreign direct investment concentrated in the construction and port...

The health of the population in Guinea is also one of the determinants of poverty, owing to its impact on the ability of the population to work with vigor. There are large disparities depending on the urban/rural residence and administrative region. In terms of the poverty level of households,...

Following years as a star performer, Ireland is undergoing a painful adjustment as critical internal imbalances unwind. This 2009 Article IV Consultation highlights that the banking system of Ireland is under considerable stress as asset quality has deteriorated and the global financial crisis...

This paper presents Joint Staff Advisory Note on the United Republic of Tanzania’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. Tanzania has already achieved the Millennium Development Goals for universal primary education, and significant progress has been made in reducing income poverty, malnutrition,...

The U.K. economy is on the mend, but crisis-related scars still need healing. The challenge ahead will be to ensure sustainable recovery and balance sheet repair while remaining flexible to respond to shocks. A highly accommodative monetary stance is required to offset the contractionary impulse...

In Kenya, the general government is not defined consistently with government finance statistics (GFS) principles. Relationships between the central government and public nonfinancial and financial corporations are generally clearly defined. Government holdings of fully owned corporations and...

The staff report for the 2006 Article IV Consultation on St. Vincent and the Grenadines highlights economic prospects and the fiscal situation. St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a small, open economy that has increasingly relied on its tourism sector. The export-oriented services sector accounts...

This paper focuses on the Fourth Review for Sierra Leone under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Program performance in the second half of 2008 was mixed. Although economic activity slowed in the last quarter, real GDP grew at an estimated 5.5 percent for the year. A key challenge is to...

Bhutan has evolved from a closed economy to a trading nation that exhibits a high degree of dependence on trade. Exports have grown rapidly but overall the country’s trade deficit continues to widen owing to an even faster growth in the value of imports. The manufacturing and industry...