Browse
The progress of 32 sub-Saharan African countries, from independence through December 1997, in liberalizing their financial sectors is the subject of IMF Occasional Paper 169, Financial Sector Development in Sub-Saharan African Countries, published in September 1998 (see IMF Survey, November 16, 1998, page 365). The paper also recommended how these countries could sustain and accelerate the modernization that is under way in many of them. Since the release of the Occasional Paper, the countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo) have implemented a number of measures that modify the overall picture of financial sector development.
Economic recovery has gained momentum, and short-term prospects have improved. Program implementation is good. Fiscal consolidation is essential for Burkina Faso’s macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability. Structural reforms remain focused on a few priority areas supporting growth and macroeconomic stability. Terms-of-trade and weather-related shocks are the main risks to the economic outlook. Executive Directors commend the government for their commitment to sound policies and encourage them to proceed with the reform agenda. The government also needs to sustain revenue mobilization to improve fiscal sustainability.
Economic recovery has gained momentum, and short-term prospects have improved. Program implementation is good. Fiscal consolidation is essential for Burkina Faso’s macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability. Structural reforms remain focused on a few priority areas supporting growth and macroeconomic stability. Terms-of-trade and weather-related shocks are the main risks to the economic outlook. Executive Directors commend the government for their commitment to sound policies and encourage them to proceed with the reform agenda. The government also needs to sustain revenue mobilization to improve fiscal sustainability.
KEY ISSUES Context. The region continued to experience strong growth in 2014, led by the continued economic expansion in Cote d’Ivoire. The outlook is for further strong growth, subject to a range of downward risks, in particular political instability ahead of upcoming elections in several countries, and security issues in Mali and Niger. With an elevated fiscal deficit exerting pressure on the balance of payments and the regional financial market, delays in fiscal consolidation or structural reforms pose the main medium-term risks. Policy recommendations: • Fiscal consolidation. Safeguarding external stability in the region will require governments to adhere to their budget deficit reduction plans while maintaining public investment efforts, which will require increasing tax revenue and controlling current expenditure. • Monetary policy. Macroeconomic conditions do not warrant a tightening of monetary policy at this juncture. However, if fiscal deficits do not decline as envisaged, the BCEAO should consider increasing its policy rates. In the mean time, the BCEAO should very closely follow the evolution of the macro-prudential risks flowing from its sharp increase in commercial bank refinancing. • Financial stability. The WAEMU authorities should enforce existing prudential rules and raise standards to international best practice. Ongoing reforms go in the right direction but need to be accelerated. • Structural transformation and regional integration. Policies to promote structural transformation should focus on addressing weaknesses, such as the lack of education and training, finance, and supportive regulatory environments. Countries should refrain from using the possibility to deviate from the common external tariff of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in force since January 1, 2015, in order to protect the gains from regional integration in WAEMU.
In recent years, the IMF has released a growing number of reports and other documents covering economic and financial developments and trends in member countries. Each report, prepared by a staff team after discussions with government officials, is published at the option of the member country.