Publication:
Rwanda Economic Update, No. 6 : Unearthing the Subsoil

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files in English
English PDF (6.61 MB)
502 downloads
English Text (430.13 KB)
107 downloads
Published
2014-08
ISSN
Date
2014-09-08
Editor(s)
Abstract
The Rwanda economic update reports on and synthesizes recent economic developments and places them in a medium-term and global context. It analyzes the implications of these developments and policies for the outlook of Rwanda s economy. These reports attempt to make an analytical contribution to the implementation of Rwanda s national development strategy. Each edition of the report includes a special feature on a selected topic. The report is intended for a wide audience, including policy makers, business leaders and other market participants, and the community of analysts engaged in Rwanda s economy.
Link to Data Set
Citation
World Bank Group. 2014. Rwanda Economic Update, No. 6 : Unearthing the Subsoil. © http://hdl.handle.net/10986/19971 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.
Digital Object Identifier
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
    Bhutan Country Economic Update : Accelerating Growth and Poverty Reduction
    (Washington, DC, 2007-09-22) World Bank
    This report was prepared to help the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) meet its felt need for more economic analysis and policy advice. It also seeks to provide information to a wider audience of development partners and interested parties. Over the past 25 years, Bhutan has been developing rapidly, pursuing sound economic policies, exploiting hydropower, and enjoying strong support from external development partners. Solid growth continues to raise per capita income and support improvements in social indicators. Through the prism of these four elements, this report seeks to contribute to the policy discussion by providing an integrative analysis and update of the Bhutanese economy, as well as developing a set of key recommendations and issues that warrant consideration or further study. Section two describes ongoing governance reforms, outlines the objectives articulated in Bhutan's Vision 2020 document and the Ninth Five-Year Plan (Ninth Plan), discusses the poverty reduction strategy, and notes progress towards meeting the millennium development goals. Section three examines recent economic developments, including growth, the balance of payments, and external debt. Section four analyzes macroeconomic policy, highlighting the challenge of fiscal volatility and the need to manage expectations surrounding the coming on-stream of the giant hydropower project Tala. Section five discusses several structural aspects of public resource management, including ongoing fiscal and financial management reforms, the importance of avoiding the 'natural resource curse,' and the treatment of state owned enterprises. Section six investigates the role of strengthening the investment climate for facilitating private sector development. Section seven comments on the prospects for accelerating growth, looking at the development of additional hydropower resources, construction, tourism, and agribusiness, emphasizing that while hydropower will continue to drive economic growth, tourism and value added activities in agriculture will be central to boosting growth and generating broad-based employment. Section eight concludes with medium term development prospects and challenges.
  • Publication
    Long-Term Fiscal Risks and Sustainability in an Oil-Rich Country : The Case of Russia
    (2010-03-01) Bogetic, Zeljko; Smits, Karlis; Budina, Nina; van Wijnbergen, Sweder
    Russia entered the global crisis with strong fiscal position, low public debt, and large fiscal and monetary reserves, which helped it cushion the crisis shocks. But the rise in the non-oil fiscal deficit in 2007-08 and, more importantly, the massive impact of the global crisis in late 2008 and 2009 have dramatically altered Russia's medium-term and long-term economic and fiscal outlook. While Russia is emerging from this crisis on a much stronger footing than during the 1998-09 crisis thanks to its strong-pre crisis fundamentals, large fiscal reserves and solid management of the crisis, it will nevertheless need to implement sustained fiscal adjustment in the coming years. Both revenue and expenditure measures will be needed. This will require 2-3 percentage points of GDP in fiscal adjustment for about five years in addition to keeping total expenditure levels at a relatively low 31.5 percent of GDP, consistent with long-term social expenditure needs and requirements of long-term fiscal sustainability. Following a period of adjustment, if Russia would restrain its long-term non-oil deficits to the permanent income (PI) equivalent of its oil revenues as proposed in this paper, its fiscal policy will return to long-term sustainable path. The long-term, sustainable level of non-oil fiscal deficit is estimated at about 4.3 percent of GDP. With the 2009 actual non-oil fiscal deficit of about 14 percent of GDP, this implies significant and sustained fiscal adjustment over the medium term. The expenditure needs of the social security system as well as a reduction in key non-oil taxes represent a major fiscal risk to all scenarios.
  • Publication
    Georgia : Adjusting in the Face of Uncertainty
    (Washington, DC, 2014-03-01) World Bank
    Economic growth picked up in the final quarter of 2013 as policy uncertainty was reduced, confidence strengthened, and budget execution substantially increased. Surge in spending in the last quarter of the year partially offset sluggish outlays earlier to leave the fiscal deficit for 2013 as a whole at 2.6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), a marginal improvement from 2012. There was a substantial increase in spending in the fourth quarter, although annual expenditures continued to be 8 percent below the budgeted amount. Revenue collections were also low due to subdued economic activity. Although the fiscal deficit is expected to increase to 3.8 percent of GDP in 2014, it should decline thereafter given the government's commitment to fiscal consolidation. The current account deficit narrowed in 2013 as exports picked up, especially to Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), while imports languished due to weak investment and consumption. The unemployment problem persisted with a net decline in business sector jobs by 5 percent during the first three quarters of 2013. In this context, the report presents political developments; recent economic developments; and economic and structural policies.
  • Publication
    Cape Verde - Enhancing Planning to Increase Efficiency of Public Spending : Background chapters
    (World Bank, 2009-02-01) World Bank
    A Public Expenditure Review (PER) update was conducted in 2006 which highlighted: (i) the large and increasing weight of non-discretionary expenditures in the total budget; (ii) the importance of improving coordination among the various planning instruments; (iii) the need to strengthen public finance management; (iv) the fiscal risks that emerge from the energy sector; and (v) the need to further progress with the pension reform. During 2006-07 the Government implemented several of the 2006 PER update recommendations. Building on the findings of the 2006 PER update, in mid 2007 the Government and the World Bank decided to prepare jointly an updated PER that would inform the preparation of the second Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (GPRSP-2) and the Country Assistance Strategy (CAS). The objectives of the PER were to: (i) examine recent macro and fiscal developments (chapter one and two); (ii) provide an update of the strengths and shortcomings of the public finance management system, the recent reforms implemented in this area and the new emerging challenges (chapter three); (iii) conduct an analysis of the fiscal decentralization issues, with particular emphasis on the municipalities' resources, expenditures, budget processes, capacity and systems, and accountability to the citizens (chapter four); and (iv) examine public expenditure issues in infrastructure, focusing on issues of adequacy, allocation and efficiency of spending in electricity, water, roads, air transportation, and ports (chapter five).
  • Publication
    Myanmar Economic Monitor, October 2013
    (Washington, DC, 2013-10) World Bank
    This economic update provides an overview for 2012 and 2013 in Myanmar, years during which the economy continued to accelerate. The main drivers of growth were increased gas production, services, construction, foreign direct investment, and strong commodity exports. Inflation has been on the rise in recent months, but the outlook is positive with the economy projected to grow more. This will be on account of a continued increase in gas production, increased trade, and stronger performance in agriculture. Risks to the outlook include the challenge of maintaining the reform momentum. Externally, a slowdown in Chinese domestic investment and a decline in global commodity prices would hurt commodity exporting countries such as Myanmar. The policy watch section presents a number of planned or recently implemented policy reforms which reflect the country's continuing drive to improve the business environment. A special feature article presents a summary of findings from a recent assessment of Myanmar s Public Financial Management (PFM).

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    World Development Report 2014
    (Washington, DC, 2013-10-06) World Bank
    The past 25 years have witnessed unprecedented changes around the world—many of them for the better. Across the continents, many countries have embarked on a path of international integration, economic reform, technological modernization, and democratic participation. As a result, economies that had been stagnant for decades are growing, people whose families had suffered deprivation for generations are escaping poverty, and hundreds of millions are enjoying the benefits of improved living standards and scientific and cultural sharing across nations. As the world changes, a host of opportunities arise constantly. With them, however, appear old and new risks, from the possibility of job loss and disease to the potential for social unrest and environmental damage. If ignored, these risks can turn into crises that reverse hard-won gains and endanger the social and economic reforms that produced these gains. The World Development Report 2014 (WDR 2014), Risk and Opportunity: Managing Risk for Development, contends that the solution is not to reject change in order to avoid risk but to prepare for the opportunities and risks that change entails. Managing risks responsibly and effectively has the potential to bring about security and a means of progress for people in developing countries and beyond. Although individuals’ own efforts, initiative, and responsibility are essential for managing risk, their success will be limited without a supportive social environment—especially when risks are large or systemic in nature. The WDR 2014 argues that people can successfully confront risks that are beyond their means by sharing their risk management with others. This can be done through naturally occurring social and economic systems that enable people to overcome the obstacles that individuals and groups face, including lack of resources and information, cognitive and behavioral failures, missing markets and public goods, and social externalities and exclusion. These systems—from the household and the community to the state and the international community—have the potential to support people’s risk management in different yet complementary ways. The Report focuses on some of the most pressing questions policy makers are asking. What role should the state take in helping people manage risks? When should this role consist of direct interventions, and when should it consist of providing an enabling environment? How can governments improve their own risk management, and what happens when they fail or lack capacity, as in many fragile and conflict-affected states? Through what mechanisms can risk management be mainstreamed into the development agenda? And how can collective action failures to manage systemic risks be addressed, especially those with irreversible consequences? The WDR 2014 provides policy makers with insights and recommendations to address these difficult questions. It should serve to guide the dialogue, operations, and contributions from key development actors—from civil society and national governments to the donor community and international development organizations.
  • Publication
    DIGITAGRO - Investing in Digital Technology to Increase Market Access for Women Agri-preneurs in Guatemala
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-03-31) Perego, Viviana M.E.; Romero, Javier; Freeman, Katie; Lopez, Angela; Ortiz, Glenn; Salas, Hugo; Ramirez, Rudy; Locatelli, Arianna; Orihuela, Danielle; de Ferrari, Camila
    Despite the strong role played by the agri-food sector in Guatemala’s economic performance and employment, reflected in high exports and strong results by larger commercial agri-businesses, small producers face daunting levels of market access, revenue generation capacity, and resilience. Schools in remote areas, however, often lack information on which producer to buy their food from, as well as basic knowledge on safe and hygienic cooking practices. These challenges are further exacerbated for women producers, who face higher information gaps, lower market access, and higher informality than their male counterparts, compounded by restrictive social norms and disempowerment. Yet, women who are engaged in agriculture have ample potential to be engaged in the school feeding business, as they tend to specialize in the production of foods that are in high demand by school. The School Feeding Program (SFP) thus represents a crucial window of opportunity for rural women in Guatemala, and a vehicle for their evolution from invisible farmers to proper agri-preneurs – economic agents in their own right in the agribusiness space. Information diffusion through digital technologies can increase market participation in rural areas and holds promise to enhance the status of women in the business sphere. The World Bank’s DIGITAGRO project, piloted digital technologies to improve market access for women agripreneurs, so they could supply the School Feeding Program in a fair, safe, sustainable, and profitable way while helping schools improve children’s nutrition. The purpose of this report is to describe the DIGITAGRO project and to present the findings of the impact evaluation study on the information campaign, in order to derive lessons on the use of digital technologies to promote market access for rural women, with a specific focus on their inclusion in Guatemala’s School Feeding Program The rest of the report is organized as follows. Chapter 2 provides an overview of family farming in Guatemala, including an assessment of the gaps encountered by rural women, and highlights child nutrition issues in the country. Chapter 3 describes the School Feeding Program, highlighting its functioning, the main actors involved, its expected benefits and the challenges it faces. Chapter 4 presents the DIGITAGRO project, providing a rationale for the use of digital technologies in agriculture, describing the main activities of the project, and providing details on the set-up of the impact evaluation study. Chapter 5 presents the experimental setting and main findings of the impact evaluation, whereas the potential mechanisms that could be driving the results are explored in Chapter 6, together with recommendations for promoting participation in the School Feeding Program. Chapter 7 discusses lessons learned and concludes.
  • Publication
    Proactive Transparency
    (2010-09-14) Darbishire, Helen
    This paper identifies four primary drivers of proactive disclosure throughout history. The first is the need to inform the public about laws and decisions and the public's right to be informed, to know their rights and obligations. The second is the public's demand for the information needed to hold governments accountable both at and between elections. The third is the demand for information in order to participate actively in decision-making. The fourth is the provision to the public of information needed to access government services, which has expanded significantly in the past decade with growth of electronic access to services or 'e-government.' This paper attempts to advance the debate around that question by analyzing the multiple proactive disclosure provisions in national law and international treaties in order to identify the emerging global consensus on the classes of information which should be included in a proactive disclosure regime. The paper examines the practical challenges related to the implementation of proactive disclosure regimes and some of the lessons learned from which principles for making proactive disclosure work in practice can be derived. It concludes by identifying some future challenges and areas where additional research is needed.
  • Publication
    Digital Africa
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13) Begazo, Tania; Dutz, Mark Andrew; Blimpo, Moussa
    All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.
  • Publication
    NDC Schemes and Heterogeneity in Longevity
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-04) Alonso-García, Jennifer; Holzmann, Robert; Labit-Hardy, Heloise; Villegas, Andrés M.
    A positive relationship between lifetime income and life expectancy leads to a redistribution mechanism when the average cohort life expectancy is applied for annuity calculation. Such a distortion puts into doubt the main features of the NDC (nonfinancial defined contribution) scheme and calls for alternative designs to compensate for the heterogeneity. This paper explores five key mechanisms of compensation: individualized annuities; individualized contribution rates; a two-tier contribution structure with socialized and individual rates; and two supplementary two-tier approaches to deal with the income distribution tails. Using unique American and British data, the analysis indicates that both individualized annuities and two-tier contribution schemes are feasible and effective and thus promising policy options. A de-pooling by gender will be required, however.