PREM Notes

176 items available

Permanent URI for this collection

http://hdl.handle.net/10986/9424

This note series is intended to summarize good practices and key policy findings on poverty reduction and economic management (PREM) topics.

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 23

Implementing Public Expenditure Tracking Surveys for Results : Lessons from a Decade of Global Experience

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-11) Gurkan, Asli ; Kaiser, Kai ; Voorbraak, Doris

Public Expenditure Tracking Surveys (PETS) can serve as a powerful tool to inform prevailing public financial management (PFM) practices and the extent to which government budgets link to execution and desired service delivery objectives and beneficiaries. Since the first PETS in Uganda in 1996, tracking exercises have now been conducted in over two dozen other countries, often as part of core analytical and advisory work related to PFM. This note synthesizes the findings and lessons from a number of recent PETS stocktaking exercises and indicates their potential benefits for enriching PFM and sectoral policy dialogues in a variety of country settings. Key findings include: (i) PETS have proven to be useful as part of a broader policy strategy aimed at improving service delivery results; (ii) PETS has become a brand name for very different instruments, but at its core there is a survey methodology that requires skilled technical expertise and a solid knowledge of budget execution processes; (iii) policy impact in a variety of PETS experiences could be further strengthened by stronger country ownership and effective follow-up; and (iv) the Bank could enhance PETS results through strategic partnering, and greater emphasis on dissemination and communication strategies aimed at involving actors who can foster actions on the ground.
Trade-Related Policy Responses to the Crisis : A Stock Taking

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-07) Evenett, Simon ; Hoekman, Bernard ; Cattaneo, Olivier

The world is facing the most severe global economic crisis since the great depression of the 1930s. For the first time since World War two, World Bank projections for annual economic growth show that world gross domestic product (GDP) will decline 2.9 percent in 2009 and growth in developing countries will fall to 1.2 percent from 5.9 percent in 2008. Excluding China and India, other developing nations' economies will shrink on average by 1.6 percent. Net private capital flows to developing countries will likely turn negative in 2009 a more than $800 billion drop from the 2007 peak. The decline in global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows that started in 2008 will deepen and spread to the developing world, with overall inflows projected to fall some 30 percent compared to 2008, the first time FDI has fallen more than 10 percent in a year since 1986. The value of remittances, perhaps the most stable source of external financing for developing countries, is expected to drop by at least 5 percent this year.
Fiscal Policy for Growth

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-04) Ley, Eduardo

While the term 'fiscal space' is new, the issue is quite old. Fiscal space refers to availability of budgetary resources for a specific purpose, typically growth-enhancing investment uses, without jeopardizing the sustainability of the government's financial position, or the stability of the economy. The recent interest in fiscal space originated as a reaction to International Monetary Fund (IMF), supported fiscal-adjustment programs that by focusing too narrowly on fiscal-deficit targets often ignored the quality of the underlying adjustment. Affected countries meanwhile advocated for fiscal space for investments in physical and human infrastructure crucial for economic growth. The IMF independent evaluation office, in their study on fiscal Adjustment in IMF supported programs acknowledged this problem, observing that 'much of the fiscal adjustment achieved is through measures that do not assure long-term sustainability and flexibility of fiscal systems to future shocks'. In effect, the improvement of the fiscal balance in the context of IMF-supported programs too often relied heavily in cuts in public investment that improve today's government cash flow at the expense of future economic growth.
Achieving WTO Compliance for Special Economic Zones in Developing Countries

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-04) Creskoff, Stephen ; Walkenhorst, Peter

Many developing countries operate geographically delineated economic areas in the form of export processing zones, special industrial zones, or free trade zones. They experiment in these special economic zones (SEZs) with infrastructure, regulatory, and fiscal policies that are different from those implemented in the rest of the domestic economy with the aim of attracting foreign investment, creating employment opportunities, and boosting exports. Special incentives for zone-based firms play a prominent role in most countries programs. This note provides an overview of the application of World Trade Organization (WTO) disciplines to incentive programs typically employed by developing countries in connection with SEZ programs. It is intended to inform policy makers, zone administrators, and the development community about the WTO consistency of such incentive measures. The analysis is concerned exclusively with multilateral law and leaves economic aspects concerning beneficial or adverse effects of such fiscal incentives aside. As in all legal analysis, different interpretations of particular provisions might be possible and the ultimate decision on the legality of a particular measure remains subject to the authoritative interpretation of the WTO and its members.
Thinking about Aid Predictability

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-09) Andrews, Matthew ; Wilhelm, Vera

Researchers are giving more attention to aid predictability. In part, this is because of increases in the number of aid agencies and aid dollars and the growing complexity of the aid community. A growing body of research is examining key questions: Is aid unpredictable? What causes unpredictability? What can be done about it? This note draws from a selection of recent literature to bring some clarity to the basic story emerging. The authors start by presenting evidence from the literature on various problems with aid flows. Then authors discuss how researchers use terms like volatility and unpredictability when discussing aid predictability; the suggest that these concepts can be sharpened by introducing two new concepts: expectations and reliability. These new concepts are particularly useful in conceptualizing the problems of unpredictable flows in government budget processes. This approach allows a basic analysis of how timing and different types of aid affect predictability, and the implications for policy making.
Pro-Poor Public Spending Reform : Uganda's Virtual Poverty Fund

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2006-03) Williamson, Tim ; Canagarajah, Sudharshan

The Poverty Action Fund (PAF) was introduced in Uganda in 1998 to reorient government expenditures towards implementing its Poverty Education Action Plan (PEAP) as well as to account for Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) resource use. This paper notes the successes of the PAR, the negative aspects, and the key lessons learned. Successes include: reorienting budget allocations towards pro-poor service delivery and demonstrating the additionality of debt relief; mobilizing donor resources and harmonizing conditions; and improved budget predictability, transparency, and accountability. The negative aspects include: unbalanced budget allocations, biased budget implementation, partial monitoring and evaluation, and no exit strategy. The key lessons were: To be effective, a Virtual Poverty Fund (VPF) should be simple and limited to the identification of Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) priority expenditures in the budget classification system; a VPF should be introduced in a way that supports rather than replaces the implementation of such comprehensive improvements in budget preparation and implementation; and a VPF does not bypass the need to have a PRSP and an effective budget process that identify priority pro-poor expenditures to be included in the VPF as part of a broader policy framework for growth and poverty reduction.
Institutionalizing M&E systems in Latin American and Caribbean Countries

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-09) Burdescu, Ruxandra ; del Villar, Azul ; Mackay, Keith ; Rojas, Fernando ; Saavedra, Jaime

Countries are driving the efforts to institutionalize monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems. Through the promotion of knowledge-sharing, and by taking stock of current M&E systems, fostering South-South collaboration, raising awareness through presentations, and, by launching an informal regional network, the note reviews the cases of Colombia, Chile, Brazil, Mexico and Peru. It became evident from country experiences, that there is no single "destination" for countries. Some stress a system of performance indicators, while others focus on conducting evaluations (program reviews or rigorous impact evaluation (IE). And while some countries have created a whole of government approach driven by finance, or planning ministries, others are more focused on sector M&E systems. One key characteristic of most of the systems that are now at different stages of implementation in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is that they are country-led efforts to institutionalize M&E, rather than donor-driven.
Engendering Justice : A Gender Assessment's Impact on Project Design

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-05) Bhansali, Lisa L.

Gender equality is an important indicator of a country's progress toward sustainable development and is one of the Millennium Development Goals. Yet World Bank teams often find gender equality a difficult concept to include in projects. One solution is to conduct a targeted gender assessment, which can help ensure that a project design addresses gender concerns and promotes equitable access to public services.
Fostering Trust and Transparency Through Information Systems

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-03) Thurston, Anne

Effective records management is a crosscutting issue. Initiatives aimed at enhancing economic performance, increasing government accountability, and strengthening civil society-such as anticorruption efforts, administrative and civil service reform, decentralization, electronic government, legal and judicial reform, public expenditure management, tax policy and administration, and access to information-all rely on access to accurate evidence.
Legislation on Freedom of Information : Trends and Standards

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-10) Mendel, Toby

Coined at the dawn of the scientific age, Bacon's aphorism has taken on new meaning today, when government agencies have at their disposal massive amounts of information about nearly every aspect of modern life. Striking an appropriate balance between the power of government and of citizens to control it demands widespread access to government-held information. As a result there is growing consensus that the right to information is a crucial element of democratic, accountable, responsive government. Recognition of this right has come swiftly. Just over a decade ago it was guaranteed in only a handful of countries. Now more than 50 countries have freedom of information laws, and 15-20 more are considering them. Moreover, a growing number of intergovernmental bodies-including the World Bank, European Union, and United Nations Development Programme-have such policies.