Intermittent civil wars have largely destroyed Liberia's physical and economic structures and the government's capacity to devise and implement policies. Executive Directors expressed concern about the weak revenue performance, lack of progress on fiscal transparency, and accountability. They...

This 2004 Article IV Consultation highlights that six years after the 1998 financial crisis, Ukraine continues to recover strongly. In 2003, real GDP grew by 9.4 percent, despite a poor harvest, and reached 13.5 percent through July 2004. Growth in 2003–04 has been prompted by favorable...

The staff report for the Request for a Three-Year Arrangement Under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility on Georgia focuses on economic developments and policies. The fiscal situation deteriorated sharply in 2003, especially because of a weakening in expenditure management and in tax...

Sri Lanka’s 2005 Article IV Consultation reports that the fiscal deficit exceeded budget targets, and with a significant amount of government financing provided by the central bank, the growth in monetary aggregates increased, contributing to higher inflation. The near-term economic...

This paper reviews the Interim Staff Report Under Intensified Surveillance for Jamaica. Following the adverse economic impact of Hurricane Ivan, the outlook for FY 2005/06 is for a rebound in growth in the context of broad macroeconomic stability. Real GDP growth slowed, and damage to...

This paper presents key findings of the Ex Post Assessment of Longer-Term Program Engagement for Bolivia. Bolivia is a country that is perceived as having one of the best structural reform records in Latin America but experienced sluggish per capita growth, and made virtually no progress in...

This 2005 Article IV Consultation highlights that since the last Article IV Consultation, Bangladesh’s economy has continued to expand, supported by a stable macroeconomic environment and progress in implementing structural reforms, broadly in line with the recommendations made by the IMF...

The staff report for the Sixth Review under the Stand-By Arrangement and Requests for Waiver of Performance Criteria on Bolivia highlights economic developments and preliminary macroeconomic framework. The economy is characterized by a number of vulnerabilities that require policy vigilance....

This Selected Issues and Statistical Appendix paper examines recent economic developments and medium-term outlook for Liberia. This paper focuses on economic developments during 2003 and 2004 and the medium-term challenges of reconstruction. The paper explores the pros and cons of adopting full...

Following satisfactory economic and financial performance under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility-supported program, performance was mixed. Benin should pursue a prudent debt-management policy with the support of the newly created debt committee. Implementation of the structural reform...