This Joint Staff Advisory Note provides IMF staff advice on key priorities for strengthening Bangladesh’s poverty reduction strategy (PRS) and for ensuring its effective implementation. It highlights key strengths of the PRS while bringing out some weaknesses of existing policies that may...

This Joint Staff Advisory Note discusses key findings of the Implementation Report for 2003 and 2004 of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper for Mali. With real GDP growth averaging 5 percent over the period 2003–05, Mali’s growth performance has improved over the preceding three...

This paper presents a Joint Staff Advisory Note on the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. Excessive domestic bank financing of the budget deficit could crowd out the private sector, increase pressure on reserve and inflation targets, and, given the...

This paper reviews the joint advice of the staffs of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund on the Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (I-PRSP). This I-PRSP outlines the main areas envisaged to reduce poverty and the measures for the implementation of the full Poverty Reduction...

This paper presents Joint Staff Advisory Note on the United Republic of Tanzania’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. Tanzania has already achieved the Millennium Development Goals for universal primary education, and significant progress has been made in reducing income poverty, malnutrition,...

Guyana continues to make progress in laying the foundation for poverty reduction, but at a slow pace. Critical issues remain to be addressed. Establishing an environment for sustained growth remains the main challenge for the government. It will be important to maintain the reform momentum and...

This paper provides an initial comprehensive framework for Afghanistan to build institutions, sustain growth, and reduce poverty. First, macroeconomic, political, and security risks were identified. As the interim strategy presents a very ambitious five-year framework, there is an urgent need...

The Kingdom of Lesotho’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper reports that consistent implementation of sound macroeconomic policies is critical to the attainment of poverty reduction objectives. At the central level, the authorities established sector working groups to facilitate the...

This note documents slow economic growth and significant delays in reform implementation owing to continued political instability and conflict. The annual progress report (APR) reviews progress in the power sector, but does not mention some critical challenges. It outlines some progress in...