The Political Economy of Fiscal Reforms

The pandemic had a significant negative impact on the public finances of sub-Saharan African countries, which will need to carry out difficult and lengthy fiscal reforms to enhance the resilience of their economies and bring public finances back on a sustainable path. The implementation of such reforms, both on the revenue as well as the expenditure side, is likely to meet political economy obstacles, and their success will not simply depend on designing good policies, but upon managing their implementation as well as responding effectively to stakeholder concerns. In this context, the round table will: (i) explore the nature of the policy constraints that countries are likely to face in the coming years; (ii) draw lessons from international experience to identify politically and socially acceptable solutions; and (iii) discuss how the interventions of donors and IFIs could better take into account political economy risks.

Moderator: Abebe Aemro Selassie, Director of the African Department, IMF

Panelists:
Bo Li, Deputy Managing Director, IMF
Jutta Urpilainen, Commissioner for International Partnerships, EC
Ahmat Jidoud, Minister of Finance, Niger
Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Nigeria
Chenai Mukumba, Policy Research and Advocacy Manager, Tax Justice Network Africa