This paper discusses implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) in Liberia. Liberia’s PRS articulates the government’s overall vision and major strategies for moving toward rapid, inclusive, and sustainable growth and development during the period 2008–11. This paper provides...

Kenya’s macroeconomic performance continued to improve until violence erupted in the aftermath of the general elections of December 2007. This 2008 Article IV Consultation highlights that GDP growth reached 7.0 percent in 2007, the highest in more than two decades. Monetary policy was...

The Republic of Kazakhstan’s 2008 Article IV Consultation shows that banks have lost access to new external financing, credit extension has stalled, and growth has slowed. Nevertheless, Kazakhstan has considerable public financial resources to help it weather the current situation and the...

Economic growth variability is low in Jamaica, with deviations driven more by weather than by external conditions. External developments do, however, have large financial implications for Jamaica. Developments in Jamaica can, in turn, have a significant influence in the wider Caribbean. A recent...

This 2009 Article IV Consultation on Timor-Leste highlights that the Timorese economy has posted high economic growth over the past two years, driven by rapid increases in government spending and a recovery in agriculture from a 2007 drought. Central government spending rose sharply in 2008,...

Croatia’s annual GDP growth accelerated to 4–5 percent, per capita incomes advanced further toward the EU average, and unemployment declined to the lowest levels since Croatia’s independence. The staff report for Croatia’s 2009 Article IV Consultation is also described. Rapid credit...

The following statistical data of Burundi are presented in detail: savings and investment, cotton production, consumption, exports, and prices, production of manufacturing industries, energy production, imports, and consumption, retail prices of petroleum products, minimum wages, import duty...

The sugar industry has contracted severely in 1998 and 1999, by 21 percent and 18 percent, respectively, principally owing to hurricane damage in both years. The sugar industry has continued to perform poorly as the St. Kitts Sugar Manufacturing Corporation (SSMC), the sole producer and exporter...

Macroeconomic developments have been very favorable since early 1999, strengthening in important areas lately. Real GDP has more than recovered from the recession that followed the 1998 crisis and the recovery is gaining momentum, with recent data suggesting that real GDP is growing at an annual...

Belize’s near-term macroeconomic prospects have improved over the past year. The main risks to growth and financial stability arise from fiscal challenges and deterioration in the global outlook. Despite data limitations that constrain the analysis, the Belize dollar appears broadly in line...