Poll will pose short-term hurdle for Zambia's IMF deal

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Commodity Prices ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Investor Confidence ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
Current Account Deficits ◽  
High Inflation ◽  
Power Deficit

Subject Outlook for Zambia's IMF programme. Significance The World Bank in its most recent report expects Zambia's GDP growth to slow to 3.4% this year from 3.6% in 2015. The slowdown is symptomatic of an array of macroeconomic challenges -- including low commodity prices, drought, currency volatility, high inflation, fiscal and current account deficits and rising debt burdens -- that have driven the Patriotic Front (PF) government to seek assistance from the IMF. Impacts Glencore's plans to invest 1.1 billion dollars in its Mopani mine will extend the asset's life, possibly by up to 25 years. The new variable mining tax system, in which tax rates rise and fall depending on global metals prices, will improve investor confidence. The substantial power deficit will persist due to the drought, which is depressing hydroelectricity output, and dilapidated facilities. Recent investments in renewables capacity -- in particular, solar power -- will prove insufficient to mitigate electricity shortages.

Angola mounting debt burden raises future default risk

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Default Risk ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Currency Depreciation ◽  
Debt Burden ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
High Inflation ◽  
African Development Bank ◽  
Central Bank Autonomy ◽  
Domestic Banks

Significance The IMF's willingness to turn a blind eye may enable Angola to retain access to concessional finance over the next 18 months; however, Luanda needs a plan to address deferred principal payments and recapitalise a key escrow account in 2023. Impacts The IMF's latest funding review will unlock USD500mn from the World Bank and USD200mn from the African Development Bank. Persistent IMF pressure for greater central bank autonomy will help curb inflation, which recently reached 25%, pending new legislation. Domestic banks remain vulnerable to economic shocks amid a lengthy recession, persistent high inflation and continued currency depreciation.

Nigeria’s infrastructure backlog could worsen

2017 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Internal Migration ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Capital Projects ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Finance Minister ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World ◽  
Additional Funding ◽  
Alternative Sources

Subject Infrastructure shortfalls. Significance Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun stated on December 11 that Nigeria will release an additional 750 billion naira (2.1 billion dollars) to federal ministries and agencies for implementation of capital projects. Adeosun has previously said the country must explore alternative sources of financing in the short term to deliver critical road, rail and power infrastructural projects. However, there are concerns about whether additional funding will lead to the delivery of such projects; the World Bank recently said that 50 infrastructure public-private partnership (PPP) projects have not met their objectives because they were hastily designed. Impacts Slow-burning conflict between farmers and herdsmen will cause more internal migration to cities, further straining infrastructure. Major infrastructure gaps will be worst in states such as Lagos and Abia, which are struggling to cope with new migrants and residents. Persistent corruption and a 'kickback' culture will result in higher infrastructure delivery and maintenance costs.

Protests to pile more pressure on Sierra Leone leader

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
New World ◽  
Commodity Prices ◽  
Washington Dc ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Reporting Requirements ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World

Subject Political outlook for Sierra Leone. Significance President Ernest Bai Koroma was met with protests when he arrived at the World Bank in Washington DC on April 17 to discuss the government's post-Ebola recovery plan. These mirror larger demonstrations in the capital, Freetown, over the ousting of his former deputy. Koroma is under growing pressure over his alleged plans for a third term and a recent graft scandal linked to Ebola funds. Impacts The GDP loss from Ebola (1.4 billion dollars; a 23.5% contraction) will exacerbate poverty, adding to popular frustration. Commodity prices will continue to depress the critical mining sector, causing budget gaps and foreign exchange shortages. The new World Bank Ebola funds (650 million dollars) will help the recovery, but rigorous reporting requirements could slow their release. US and Chinese backing for a new African Centres for Disease Control may improve early warning capabilities ahead of future epidemics.

Supervision change could politicise banking in Georgia

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Asian Development Bank ◽  
Banking Supervision ◽  
Development Bank ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bank Supervision ◽  
Investor Confidence ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Stability

Significance Tensions between the governing Georgian Dream (GD) coalition, President Giorgi Margvelashvili and Kadagidze have risen rapidly in recent months, sparked by the government's controversial bill on bank supervision. The GD bill would transfer supervision of banks and other financial institutions from the NBG to a new agency. The bill has been criticised by the NBG, the president and multilateral agencies, including the IMF, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank. Impacts Members of the government will continue to blame the NBG for the lari's depreciation, in a bid to deflect criticism from themselves. Separating banking supervision from the NBG will lead to concerns over the stability of the financial sector. Investor confidence will be undermined, potentially weighing on foreign investment inflows in the short term.

Financial access and economic development: the moderating role of financial consumer protection

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 406-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryam Kriese ◽  
Joshua Yindenaba Abor ◽  
Elikplimi Agbloyor
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Financial Literacy ◽  
Compliance Monitoring ◽  
Financial Access ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
Moderating Role

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of financial consumer protection (FCP) in the access–development nexus. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on cross-country data on 102 countries surveyed in the World Bank Global Survey on FCP and Financial Literacy (2013). The White heteroscedasticity adjusted regressions and Two-stage least squares regressions (2SLS) are used for the estimation. Findings Interactions between FCP regulations that foster fair treatment, disclosure, dispute resolution and recourse and financial access have positive net effects on economic development. However, there is no sufficient evidence to suggest that interactions between financial access and enforcement and compliance monitoring regulations have a significant effect on economic development. Practical implications First, policy makers should continue with efforts aimed at instituting FCP regimes as part of strategies aimed at broadening access to financial services for enhanced economic development. Second, instituting FCP regimes per se may not be enough. Policy makers need to consider possible intervening factors such as the provision of adequate resources and supervisory authority, for compliance monitoring and enforcement to achieve the expected positive effect on economic development. Originality/value This study extends evidence in the law–finance–growth literature by providing empirical evidence on the effect of legal institution specific to the protection of retail financial consumers on the access–development nexus using a nouvel data set, the World Bank Global survey on FCP and Financial Literacy (2013).

The IMF, its mandate and influence in prevention of financial sector abuse

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 987-1011
Author(s):  
Norman Mugarura
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Financial Sector ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World ◽  
Secondary Data Sources ◽  
Work Done ◽  
The Imf

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to articulate the mandate of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) not least in promoting a sound legal regulatory environment for markets to operate globally and its inherent challenges. While acknowledging the plausible work done by the IMF in supporting countries to achieve their macro-economic stability, the paper articulates some of its shortcomings as a global institution. It is evident that the post-war climate in which the World Bank and IMF were created has drastically changed – which presupposes that these institutions now need to reposition themselves to reflect on contemporary global challenges accordingly. The author has argued in the past that a robust regulatory system should be devised taking into account the dynamic challenges in the market environment but also to prevent them from happening again. Design/methodology/approach The paper has utilized empirical evidence to evaluate the mandate of the IMF in addressing its dynamic challenges such as the global financial and debt crises in Europe and the USA and prevention of financial sector abuse globally. The IMF is one of the Bretton Woods Institutions charged with the oversight responsibility to enforce policies and enable countries to manage their macro-economic challenges efficiently. Findings The findings demonstrate that the IMF is as relevant and important as it was when it was created in 1945. However, there is a need for intrinsic and structural changes within this institution to continue discharging its mandate in a changed global regulatory landscape. The IMF is still crucial in fostering a fundamental stabilization function to fragile global economies in areas of financial and technical assistance, and developing requisite legal and supervisory infrastructure within fledging member countries. Research limitations/implications The paper was written by analysis of both theoretical and empirical data largely based on secondary data sources. It would have been better to first present the findings in an international conference to solicit wide views and internalize them accordingly. Practical implications While acknowledging the plausible work done by the IMF and its counterpart the World Bank in facilitating global financial markets regulation and prevention of financial sector abuse, as oversight institutions, they need to constantly review their mandate to respond robustly to their dynamic challenges such as the global and debt crises and financial sector abuse. Oversight institutions need to constantly review and adapt their mandate accordingly, if they are to discharge their varied responsibilities efficiently. They cannot stand still in the face of challenges because they will be superseded and kept at a back foot. Social implications Markets and states are embedded in each other, and the way they are regulated is of a significant importance to varied stakeholders and people. Originality/value This paper is one of its kind, is unique in its character and evaluates embedded issues using empirical evidence in a way not done in its context before. Secondary data sources have been evaluated to achieve a thoughtful analysis of the objectives of the paper.

Major obstacles facing business enterprises in an emerging economy: the case of Ghana using the World Bank Enterprise Survey

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 475-487
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Mohammed ◽  
Alhassan Bunyaminu
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Emerging Economy ◽  
Probit Regression ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World ◽  
Business Enterprises ◽  
World Bank Enterprise Survey ◽  
Enterprise Survey

PurposeThis paper aims at identifying the major obstacles to business enterprise in an emerging economy and how these obstacles are associated with different characteristics of the enterprises.Design/methodology/approachThe study relied on the World Bank Enterprise Survey data on Ghana and applied binary and ordinal probit regression techniques to estimate the associations between the characteristics of the enterprises and the identified obstacles. Significance testing of the associations is also conducted.FindingsThe five main obstacles perceived by most of the enterprises in the study are access to finance, electricity, access to land, customs and trade regulations and tax rates. These obstacles are associated in different ways to growth rate (high vs low growth), scale (small and medium vs large), age, size of employees, the experience of the top manager and ownership (wholly domestic vs foreign ownership).Research limitations/implicationsAs a cross-sectional study focusing on Ghana, the findings are informative about the major obstacles facing business enterprises in an emerging economy; however, the ecological validity of these findings may be limited to factors specific to Ghana.Originality/valueGiven the representativeness of the Enterprise Survey, policymakers can rely on these findings to formulate useful policies to promote the operations of business enterprises.

East and West will divide over new Bosnian viceroy

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
World Bank ◽  
Common Interest ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World ◽  
East And West ◽  
Dayton Agreement ◽  
Negative Behaviour ◽  
Roll Out ◽  
The Eu

Significance The summit’s avowed aim was to renew the EU-US ‘Transatlantic partnership’, including committing to upholding the international rules-based order built around the UN. It called for cooperation with Russia in areas of common interest despite its repeated “negative behaviour”. Such strains include Russia’s opposition to appointing a new high representative for Bosnia. Impacts Vucic’s call for regular reports from the high representative recognises his legitimacy while asserting Serbian interest in BiH. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic’s support for the 1995 Dayton agreement weakens outside backing for Bosnian Croat separatism. The World Bank has left its growth forecast for BiH unchanged from January, provided vaccine roll-out accelerates.

Cognitive abilities and income: preliminary evidence from a developing country

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Raufhon Salahodjaev ◽  
Ziyodakhon Malikova
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Standard Deviation Increase ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
Unconditional Model ◽  
The World

Purpose Related literature finds that human capital proxied by cognitive abilities is an important antecedent of numerous specific life outcomes. The purpose of this study is to extend existing evidence by investigating the link between cognitive skills and income in Tajikistan. Tajikistan is a landlocked low-income country situated in Central Asia. Its population is 9.1 million people and gross domestic product per capita of US$822. According to the World Bank, Tajikistan has made significant progress in decreasing poverty levels from 83% in 2000 to 29.5% in 2017. Design/methodology/approach The data for this study comes from the 2013 Jobs, Skills and Migration Survey conducted by the World Bank and the German Society for International Cooperation. The main explanatory variable of the study is the cognitive abilities index of the respondents. The survey used item response theory (IRT) approach to estimate the ability of respondents. IRT is a method or a set of statistical frameworks, used to explore assessment item data, such as cognitive abilities assessment data. The wage function was estimated using the ordinary least squares method because the results are easier to interpret (Jencks, 1979; Bowles et al., 2001; Groves, 2006). Findings The baseline results are reported in Table 2. The results in Column 1 demonstrated the link between cognitive abilities and income without control variables (unconditional model). As expected, cognitive abilities are positively and significantly related to income (a1 = 0.0715, p < 0.01). The results from the unconditional model suggest that one standard deviation increase in cognitive abilities is associated with a nearly 17% increase in income. Research limitations/implications However, the study has a number of limitations. First, the dependent variable measures the overall income of the respondent, which includes the profit from other businesses. The survey does not provide data on monthly wages of respondents. Second, the sample may not perfectly represent the overall population of Tajikistan. To partially resolve this issue, this paper re-estimated out results for various sub-samples. Another important limitation of this study is the lack of respondent’s family background, which is an important correlate of human capital and income. Practical implications The results in the study offer preliminary evidence on the link between cognitive abilities and income in Tajikistan. However, the results of the study also suggest that both measures of human capital are positively related to income. Therefore, policymakers in Tajikistan should invest greater resources to health care, education and training programs as cognitive skills can be built in particular in the early stages of the life cycle. Indeed, Tajikistan has a significant potential for economic growth model driven by human capital. According to the World Bank, the adult literacy rate in Tajikistan is 100%, which is significantly above of what is observed in other developing countries. This may imply that the human potential in this country is considerable, and further investment in soft and hard skills would have a positive impact on economic growth. Originality/value This paper offers new evidence on the link between cognitive abilities and income, using data from Tajikistan. First, this paper finds that cognitive abilities are positively and significantly correlated with income. Second, this paper finds that this link remains robust even when this paper control for a large set of personal and job-related characteristics. The results from the unconditional model suggest that one standard deviation increase in cognitive abilities is associated with nearly a 17% increase in income.

The effect of FDI on domestic investment and economic growth case of three Maghreb countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walid Ali ◽  
Ali Mna
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Domestic Investment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
Endogenous Variables ◽  
The Interest Rate ◽  
Investment Growth

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to show how foreign direct investment (FDI) affects domestic investment and economic growth. This study empirically examines this question in the case of three developing countries (Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco).Design/methodology/approachUsing the GMM estimator technique, the authors constructed a system with simultaneous equations by three endogenous variables: economic growth (GDP), FDI and domestic investment (DI).FindingsThe study was a nuance, its results, at the role of investment–growth relationship, are of paramount importance though subtle and slightly different.Originality/valueThe authors used data from international institutions such as the IMF, UNCTAD, OECD and the World Bank for macroeconomic aggregates. However, the interest rate variables are derived from the central banks of the three countries in the sample. The analysis covers the period from 1980 to 2014.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document