The Africa Debt Monitor

Posted by Danielle Serebro[1]

Public debt transparency depends on three key conditions: (i) effective recording, (ii) an extensive reporting function, and (iii) a willingness to share debt-related information (UNCTAD, 2018). Anomalous cases, such as Mozambique, where “off-book” loans were contracted to purchase fishing vessels and military equipment, and Zambia, which is suspected of hiding substantial external debt, have contributed to a general perception that African countries are unwilling to share their debt data and do not meet the third condition of debt transparency.

Good Financial Information Systems for Good Fiscal Transparency

Posted by Richard Allen and Gerardo Uña[1] 

The Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency (GIFT) organized two recent events to discuss how good financial management information systems (FMIS) are good for fiscal transparency. One of them was a webinar (http://www.fiscaltransparency.net/publish/) and the other was a working lunch at GIFT’s headquarters in Washington, DC. The webinar moderator was Lorena Rivera del Paso (GIFT), and the speakers were Neil Cole (CABRI, South Africa), Gustavo Merino (Ministry of Finance, Argentina), and Richard Allen and Gerardo Uña, both from Fiscal Affairs Department, IMF. Other participants included representatives of the US Treasury Department, the Open Government Partnership, and the International Budget Partnership.

“People, Planet, & Public Finance”: Not Just Another Climate Change Podcast

Posted by Delaine McCullough and Paul Steele[1]

A new space for discussing issues related to the use of public finance systems for addressing the climate crisis, build equitable and resilient societies, and strengthen environmental stewardship was launched this week.

Join the IMF Anti-Corruption Challenge!

Posted by Thibault Vermeulen

Do you want to join the fight against corruption by finding good IT solutions? The IMF Anti-Corruption Challenge has just been launched!  Check out the #anticorruption #IMFchallenge on the following link .This initiative seeks collaborative project proposals from country authorities, relevant civil society organizations (CSOs), and staff from the IMF and other International Financial Institutions on the following topics:

Revenue Forecasting in Developing Countries: Biases and Potential Remedies

Posted by Rahul Pathak[1]

Revenue forecasting is a critical component of budget preparation and sound management of public finances. In the last couple of decades, rising national and subnational debt burdens have been associated in many countries with substantial biases in forecasts of the fiscal deficit. An important contributing factor is the systematic overestimation of revenues, leading governments to propose higher levels of spending in the budget which are subsequently approved by the legislature. As revenue realization falls short of forecast, reining in spending has proved to be difficult in many countries. This revenue forecast bias could be a result of inaccuracies in the macroeconomic forecasting models, weak institutional capacities of the central budget office,[2] and, most importantly, a manifestation of political preferences.[3] In low and middle-income countries, these factors may assume even more significance and hinder the development of an effective PFM system.