Africa > Uganda
Abstract
Privatization has been a key element of structural reform in many developing and transition economies during the last decade. This paper examines the fiscal and macroeconomic issues involved in the privatization of nonfinancial public enterprises in these economies. It considers issues such as the factors determining the proceeds from privatization and the amount accruing to the budget, the uses of proceeds, the impact of privatization on the budget and macroeconomic aggregates, and the privatization component of IMF-supported programs. The empirical evidence draws on case study countries that reflect geographical diversity and are representative of a range of privatization experience in developing and transition economies.
This Selected Issues paper and Statistical Appendix analyzes poverty and social development in Uganda. The paper reviews recent poverty and inequality trends, examines how poor people are coping with risk and vulnerability, analyzes the relationship between economic growth, structural reform and poverty, and describes the government policies in these areas. The paper also provides a brief overview of major institutional developments in Uganda’s financial sector since 1993 with regard to the legal, accounting, and general regulatory framework in which financial institutions operate.
This Selected Issues paper and Statistical Appendix describes how to improve value-added tax (VAT) compliance in Uganda. The paper highlights that although the VAT in Uganda has a single positive rate and broad coverage, its initial threshold of U Sh 20 million may have been set too low, and a number of items that should have been exempted were zero rated. This paper presents a brief survey of the financial sector of Uganda. Public sector reforms and the privatization program are also discussed.
Abstract
Over the past two decades, sub-Saharan Africa has lagged behind other regions in economic performance. The important overall indicators of performance, however, mask wide differences among countries. On the whole, countries that effectively implemented comprehensive adjustment and reform programs showed better results. Their experiences demonstrate that an expansion in private saving and investment is key to achieving gains in real per capita GDP. The four papers included in this publication provide a cross country analysis that assesses empirically the role of publlic policies in stimulating private saving and investment in the region in 1986-92 and describe the adjustment experiences of Ghana (1983-91), Senegal (1978-1993), and Uganda (1987-94).
Abstract
This paper reviews recent experience of African countries in the design and implementation of adjustment programs supported by use of Fund resources.
Abstract
This paper reviews recent experience of African countries in the design and implementation of adjustment programs supported by use of Fund resources.1 The aggregate analysis covers primarily 1980 and 1981, while the case studies include results through the end of 1983. The paper is divided into seven parts. The first part outlines the economic background leading to the emergence or aggravation of financial imbalances in Africa before 1980. The second part reviews the role of the Fund in financing and adjustment. The third part examines the objectives of programs supported by use of Fund resources. Against this background, the fourth part analyzes the design of programs. The fifth part assesses the experience in implementing adjustment programs, with a view to determining the reasons for the difficulties that these countries encountered. The sixth part provides case studies of the recent adjustment programs of Somalia and Mali, which were supported by use of Fund resources. The conclusion summarizes the study’s main findings.
Abstract
Privatization has been a key element of structural reform in many developing and transition economies during the last decade. Governments undertaking privatization have pursued a variety of objectives: achieving gains in economic efficiency, given the extensive prevalence of poor economic performance of public enterprises in many countries and limited success with their reform; and improving the fiscal position, particularly in cases where governments have been unwilling or unable to continue to finance deficits in the public enterprise sector. In addition, liquidity-constrained governments facing fiscal pressures have sometimes privatized with a view to financing fiscal deficits with the proceeds. Other objectives have included the development of domestic capital markets.
Abstract
During the past two decades, sub-Saharan Africa has lagged behind other developing regions in economic performance. However, the important overall indicators of performance have masked wide differences among subgroups of countries in the region. On the whole, African countries that have effectively implemented comprehensive adjustment and reform programs have shown better results. The divergence in performance among the various country groups has primarily reflected differences in their policy response to the deterioration in the terms of trade, as well as in progress made toward promoting macroeconomic stability, improving external competitiveness, and alleviating structural and institutional impediments to private sector activity.
Abstract
The experience of sub-Saharan African countries in recent years has demonstrated that achieving gains in real per capita incomes requires more private saving and investment.1 Nonetheless, saving and investment ratios in sub-Saharan African countries are significantly lower than in other developing countries and still too low to support a sustainable expansion in output and employment. For example, the ratios to GDP of total saving and investment in sub-Saharan Africa during 1986–92 amounted to 11.8 percent and 18.6 percent, respectively, as compared with 24.5 percent and 25.7 percent for developing countries in general (IMF (1994)). World Bank estimates indicate that an investment to GDP ratio of about 25 percent is needed by sub-Saharan African countries to maintain a sustainable economic growth rate of about 6 percent. In addition, recent developments in the theory of endogenous growth have established positive long-run effects on growth stemming from increases in the investment ratio, and much of the recent empirical evidence in the growth literature has found strong, positive, significant, and robust effects on economic growth from increases in investment ratios.2 Thus, in the period ahead, sub-Saharan African countries will be challenged to raise their investment ratios to boost economic growth and to close the gaps in regional economic performance. However, given the limited foreign direct investment in sub-Saharan Africa and the growing demand for the limited international foreign assistance funds, more resources needed to finance investment in the region will have to come from domestic sources.3 Accordingly, public policies need to be directed at establishing an environment conducive to the development of the indigenous private sector; such policies will also be needed to attract foreign direct investment.