Publication:
Nepal : Public Expenditure Review, Volume 1. Main Report

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files in English
English PDF (9.54 MB)
442 downloads
English Text (392.06 KB)
83 downloads
Date
2000-04-11
ISSN
Published
2000-04-11
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
The report is an overview of Nepal's economic development, comprising five volumes, which include the main report, followed by reviews on agricultural and rural development, on the social sectors, and, the transport sector. Although development progress is noteworthy in many areas, considerable evidence of improper resource spending exist, thus, the main objective of this report is to identify the incentives, and institutional factors that contributed to this spending, and propose recommendations. Systemic factors have consistently hindered implementation, and development results, such as deficient budget planning, resource allocation, and expenditure management, coupled with the lack of ownership of projects, and programs which contributed to poor performance. Institutional weakness, and governance issues remain the most critical aspects affecting effectiveness of public spending across sectors in Nepal. The report suggests that traditional budget reforms alone, will not be effective to improve public resource management, rather, changes in the political environment, and institutional capacity are required, prior to the much needed reforms. Given the fiscal constraints, the government should promote private participation to undertake economic activities, and, further enhance and promote, public involvement in social sectors development, and greater local ownership of public expenditure programs.
Link to Data Set
Citation
World Bank. 2000. Nepal : Public Expenditure Review, Volume 1. Main Report. Public expenditure review (PER);. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15153 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    Nepal : 2000 Economic Update
    (Washington, DC, 2000-03-27) World Bank
    The report is one of the documents in support of discussions for an upcoming Nepal Development Forum meeting, and, updates the macroeconomic development, and performance of related key areas of the economy, specifically, the period following the last economic update of November 1997, focusing on the provision of an overall framework for the reform agenda. The study reviews the economic growth of the country, which, despite certain growth, enabled by a series of reforms in the late eighties, has slowed down in recent years, largely due to political instability. Consequently, economic performance has been unsatisfactory, with almost no progress in reducing poverty, nor in addressing structural reforms. Forceful actions to accelerate economic development are recommended, namely, to improve public resource management, by changing the role of the public sector, towards the improvement of public expenditures, and revenue reforms. Furthermore, it is necessary to provide a level playing field for the private sector vis-e-vis public enterprises, enhancing competitiveness, and, most importantly, to establish the rule of law, in support of private sector activities. Conclusions address critical issues, such as financial sector reforms, institutional capacity building, decentralization, and the promotion of ownership, and participation.
  • Publication
    Guyana : Public Expenditure Review
    (Washington, DC, 2002-08-20) World Bank
    Since independence in 1966, Guyana's economy has gone through a state control of major productive sectors, and financial institutions - including controls of prices, credit, and foreign exchange - to a combination of political/social unrest, with terms of trade deterioration, and slow economic growth. This led Guyana to become the fourth poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, despite its rich endowment in mineral resources, biodiversity, and forested land. In this context, the main objective of the Public Expenditure Review (PER) is to analyze its expenditures so as to gain understanding of the structure of Government's budget processes to allow its execution, and, assist the Government in reorienting policies, institutions, and expenditures, to achieve private sector-led growth, and better services to the poor. The PER identifies a number of weaknesses in the budget process, namely, the need for intermediate steps to set the budget within a forward-looking medium term expenditure framework, the need to prepare current and capital expenditure budgets jointly, planning for future recurrent costs, and, the need to present the budget to Parliament on a timely basis with adequate information. Recommendations suggest the budget be prepared within a national development program, and a multi-year rolling expenditure framework, with integrated budget processes for current, and capital expenditures, and, strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Finance for economic modeling, and forecasting. The report assesses sectoral policies, and expenditures in four broad areas: health, education, poverty programs, and infrastructure, focusing on how policies, incentives, and budgetary allocations can change to improve economic efficiency, and poverty alleviation.
  • Publication
    South Africa Economic Update
    (Washington, DC, 2011) World Bank
    The firming of the economic recovery is putting the policy spotlight back on the longer term challenge of faster, more inclusive Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth. Modest investment rates despite attractive returns and low savings rates despite favorable demographics are important impediments. A virtuous cycle of faster capital accumulation, job creation (especially for the youth), and technological advancement needs to be stimulated. There are no quick fixes that can produce the desired stimulus. The quest for inclusive growth calls for a different, bolder approach. Integration of the advanced and less-developed economies and more effective integration with the global economy, using factory Southern Africa as a platform, hold considerable potential. South Africa's medium-term growth prospects point to a strengthening recovery. GDP growth is projected to be 3.5 percent in 2011, 4.1 percent in 2012 and 4.4 percent in 2013. The long term potential growth rate under the current policy environment is estimated at 3.5 percent. In light of South Africa's low national savings, the reemergence of high current account deficits, financed mostly through volatile portfolio flows, will reemerge as the biggest cause for macroeconomic concern over the medium term. With considerable strengthening of the economic recovery and GDP projected to reach its potential by 2014, the focus shifts back to the longer term challenge of raising GDP growth to 6-7 percent and making it much more inclusive to tackle the extremely high unemployment. This first issue is anchored in the national aspirations of faster and more inclusive growth, with special emphasis on the issues of savings and investment.
  • Publication
    Accountability in Public Services in South Africa
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2011-03) World Bank
    This report discusses selected issues regarding accountability in public services. The introduction discusses the accountability framework that will be used for the report. Chapter 1 assesses South Africa's progress on service access and quality, and summarizes recent policy initiatives. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 describe the international and South African experience with mechanisms that seek to improve accountability - public sector reform, citizen report cards, and others - and posits hypotheses to be explored in the following chapters. Chapter 5 applies the World Bank's accountability framework to a participatory assessment of services in six municipalities in South Africa. Chapters 6 and 7 apply the framework to the education and water and sanitation sectors. Chapter 8 explains why community-driven development does not factor in any main South African development programs. Chapter 9 explains the continuing learning practices pioneered in the manufacturing sector and addresses how these practices might be used by the South African government to effect change. Chapter 10 summarizes the conclusions, translates these into main hypotheses to be tested in future work, and formulates a number of policy recommendations for public debate.
  • Publication
    Albania : Public Expenditure and Institutional Review, Volume 1. Executive Summary
    (Washington, DC, 2001-04-16) World Bank
    This report presents an in-depth evaluation of the budgetary planning process in Albania and the institutional arrangements required for better management of public expenditures. The report does not provide a detailed analysis of expenditures or an assessment of investment projects and their outcomes in each sector. Such a shift in emphasis is appropriate given the currently weak institutional capacities in Albania and the need to enforce accountability in the public sector.The report is arranged as follows: Chapter 1 deals with the macroeconomic frmaework and policies needed to maintain fiscal sustainability and improve fiscal discipline. Chapter 2 discusses revenue and expenditure patterns, presents measures that would enhance revenue performance and analyzes the allocation of expenditures. This chapter is designed to highlight the key expenditure priorities that should be more fully addressed as Albania moves forward with the medium-term expenditure framework process (MTEF). The bulk of the report--Chapters 3, 4, and 5--addresses key challenges facing Albania to improve its institutional environment and its capacities. Chapter 3 assesses the public expenditure management process and its weaknesses and how this process should be reformed. Chapter 4 explains how establishing the MTEF mechanism could provide a better linkage between policy planning and the allocation of resources. Chapter 5 discusses meeting institutional capacity requirements.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    World Development Report 2011
    (World Bank, 2011) World Bank
    The 2011 World development report looks across disciplines and experiences drawn from around the world to offer some ideas and practical recommendations on how to move beyond conflict and fragility and secure development. The key messages are important for all countries-low, middle, and high income-as well as for regional and global institutions: first, institutional legitimacy is the key to stability. When state institutions do not adequately protect citizens, guard against corruption, or provide access to justice; when markets do not provide job opportunities; or when communities have lost social cohesion-the likelihood of violent conflict increases. Second, investing in citizen security, justice, and jobs is essential to reducing violence. But there are major structural gaps in our collective capabilities to support these areas. Third, confronting this challenge effectively means that institutions need to change. International agencies and partners from other countries must adapt procedures so they can respond with agility and speed, a longer-term perspective, and greater staying power. Fourth, need to adopt a layered approach. Some problems can be addressed at the country level, but others need to be addressed at a regional level, such as developing markets that integrate insecure areas and pooling resources for building capacity Fifth, in adopting these approaches, need to be aware that the global landscape is changing. Regional institutions and middle income countries are playing a larger role. This means should pay more attention to south-south and south-north exchanges, and to the recent transition experiences of middle income countries.
  • Publication
    Digital Progress and Trends Report 2023
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-03-05) World Bank
    Digitalization is the transformational opportunity of our time. The digital sector has become a powerhouse of innovation, economic growth, and job creation. Value added in the IT services sector grew at 8 percent annually during 2000–22, nearly twice as fast as the global economy. Employment growth in IT services reached 7 percent annually, six times higher than total employment growth. The diffusion and adoption of digital technologies are just as critical as their invention. Digital uptake has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.5 billion new internet users added from 2018 to 2022. The share of firms investing in digital solutions around the world has more than doubled from 2020 to 2022. Low-income countries, vulnerable populations, and small firms, however, have been falling behind, while transformative digital innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) have been accelerating in higher-income countries. Although more than 90 percent of the population in high-income countries was online in 2022, only one in four people in low-income countries used the internet, and the speed of their connection was typically only a small fraction of that in wealthier countries. As businesses in technologically advanced countries integrate generative AI into their products and services, less than half of the businesses in many low- and middle-income countries have an internet connection. The growing digital divide is exacerbating the poverty and productivity gaps between richer and poorer economies. The Digital Progress and Trends Report series will track global digitalization progress and highlight policy trends, debates, and implications for low- and middle-income countries. The series adds to the global efforts to study the progress and trends of digitalization in two main ways: · By compiling, curating, and analyzing data from diverse sources to present a comprehensive picture of digitalization in low- and middle-income countries, including in-depth analyses on understudied topics. · By developing insights on policy opportunities, challenges, and debates and reflecting the perspectives of various stakeholders and the World Bank’s operational experiences. This report, the first in the series, aims to inform evidence-based policy making and motivate action among internal and external audiences and stakeholders. The report will bring global attention to high-performing countries that have valuable experience to share as well as to areas where efforts will need to be redoubled.
  • Publication
    Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21) Luna-Bazaldua, Diego; Levin, Victoria; Liberman, Julia; Gala, Priyal Mukesh
    This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.
  • Publication
    Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Fall 2024: Better Education for Stronger Growth
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-17) Izvorski, Ivailo; Kasyanenko, Sergiy; Lokshin, Michael M.; Torre, Iván
    Economic growth in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) is likely to moderate from 3.5 percent in 2023 to 3.3 percent this year. This is significantly weaker than the 4.1 percent average growth in 2000-19. Growth this year is driven by expansionary fiscal policies and strong private consumption. External demand is less favorable because of weak economic expansion in major trading partners, like the European Union. Growth is likely to slow further in 2025, mostly because of the easing of expansion in the Russian Federation and Turkiye. This Europe and Central Asia Economic Update calls for a major overhaul of education systems across the region, particularly higher education, to unleash the talent needed to reinvigorate growth and boost convergence with high-income countries. Universities in the region suffer from poor management, outdated curricula, and inadequate funding and infrastructure. A mismatch between graduates' skills and the skills employers are seeking leads to wasted potential and contributes to the region's brain drain. Reversing the decline in the quality of education will require prioritizing improvements in teacher training, updated curricula, and investment in educational infrastructure. In higher education, reforms are needed to consolidate university systems, integrate them with research centers, and provide reskilling opportunities for adult workers.
  • Publication
    Business Ready 2024
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-03) World Bank
    Business Ready (B-READY) is a new World Bank Group corporate flagship report that evaluates the business and investment climate worldwide. It replaces and improves upon the Doing Business project. B-READY provides a comprehensive data set and description of the factors that strengthen the private sector, not only by advancing the interests of individual firms but also by elevating the interests of workers, consumers, potential new enterprises, and the natural environment. This 2024 report introduces a new analytical framework that benchmarks economies based on three pillars: Regulatory Framework, Public Services, and Operational Efficiency. The analysis centers on 10 topics essential for private sector development that correspond to various stages of the life cycle of a firm. The report also offers insights into three cross-cutting themes that are relevant for modern economies: digital adoption, environmental sustainability, and gender. B-READY draws on a robust data collection process that includes specially tailored expert questionnaires and firm-level surveys. The 2024 report, which covers 50 economies, serves as the first in a series that will expand in geographical coverage and refine its methodology over time, supporting reform advocacy, policy guidance, and further analysis and research.