Short-Run Public Reactions to Food Subsidy Cuts in Selected Sub-Saharan and North African Countries PDF Download
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Author: J. M. Nelson Publisher: ISBN: Category : Languages : en Pages : 76
Book Description
Many countries in North and sub-Saharan Africa control consumer prices of staple foods in ways which contribute to fiscal deficits. Such deficits have been increasingly difficult to sustain in the context of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Therefore the IMF frequently, other external agents often, and internal economic officials sometimes have urged that consumer prices be increased to cut or eliminate the subsidy element. Perhaps the largest obstacle to such measures is fear of urban riots. But riots are not an inevitable response to increased food prices. In fact, there are many instances of sizable increases without significant public protest. This study seeks to identify the factors that determine short-run public responses to increases in consumer prices for staple foods, primarily staple grains like rice and wheat products. Particular attention is given to the influence on public reactions of factors over which the government has some control in the short run--that is, policy variables. The study examines experience with nominal consumer price increases for subsidized food staples in four countries: Morocco, Tunisis, Senegal and Madagascar. These are all cases in which most or all of the urban populations has access to the subsidized staples at official prices, although in some cases the rural population did not.
Author: J. M. Nelson Publisher: ISBN: Category : Languages : en Pages : 76
Book Description
Many countries in North and sub-Saharan Africa control consumer prices of staple foods in ways which contribute to fiscal deficits. Such deficits have been increasingly difficult to sustain in the context of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Therefore the IMF frequently, other external agents often, and internal economic officials sometimes have urged that consumer prices be increased to cut or eliminate the subsidy element. Perhaps the largest obstacle to such measures is fear of urban riots. But riots are not an inevitable response to increased food prices. In fact, there are many instances of sizable increases without significant public protest. This study seeks to identify the factors that determine short-run public responses to increases in consumer prices for staple foods, primarily staple grains like rice and wheat products. Particular attention is given to the influence on public reactions of factors over which the government has some control in the short run--that is, policy variables. The study examines experience with nominal consumer price increases for subsidized food staples in four countries: Morocco, Tunisis, Senegal and Madagascar. These are all cases in which most or all of the urban populations has access to the subsidized staples at official prices, although in some cases the rural population did not.
Author: Mr.Carlo A. Sdralevich Publisher: International Monetary Fund ISBN: 1498348467 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 130
Book Description
In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries price subsidies are common, especially on food and fuels. However, these are neither well targeted nor cost effective as a social protection tool, often benefiting mainly the better off instead of the poor and vulnerable. This paper explores the challenges of replacing generalized price subsidies with more equitable social safety net instruments, including the short-term inflationary effects, and describes the features of successful subsidy reforms.
Author: Stephan Haggard Publisher: Princeton University Press ISBN: 0691188033 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 371
Book Description
In the 1980s some developing countries adopted orthodox market-oriented policies in response to international economic crises, others experimented with alternative programs, and still others failed to develop coherent adjustment strategies of any sort. Building on the case studies in Economic Crisis and Policy Choice, these essays offer comparative analysis of these divergent experiences with macroeconomic stabilization and structural adjustment. Barbara Stallings and Miles Kahler explore the external pressures on governments. Peter Evans and John Waterbury examine the role of the state in the adjustment process, Evans through the lens of earlier historical experience with economic restructuring, Waterbury by focusing on the politics of privatization. Joan Nelson analyzes the politics of income distribution in the adjustment process, and Haggard and Kaufman investigate the political correlates of inflation and stabilization. A final essay assesses the prospects for combining market-oriented reforms with political democratization.
Author: Mr.Trevor Serge Coleridge Alleyne Publisher: International Monetary Fund ISBN: 1484366549 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 125
Book Description
The reform of energy subsidies is an important but challenging issue for sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. There is a relatively large theoretical and empirical literature on this issue. While this paper relies on that literature, too, it tailors its discussion to SSA countries to respond to the following questions: Why it is important to reduce energy subsidies? What are the difficulties involved in energy subsidy reform? How best can a subsidy reform be implemented? This paper uses various sources of information on SSA countries: quantitative assessments, surveys, and individual (but standardized) case studies.
Author: Jeffrey D. Sachs Publisher: University of Chicago Press ISBN: 0226733181 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 414
Book Description
For dozens of developing countries, the financial upheavals of the 1980s have set back economic development by a decade or more. Poverty in those countries has intensified as they struggle under the burden of an enormous external debt. In 1988, more than six years after the onset of the crisis, almost all the debtor countries were still unable to borrow in the international capital markets on normal terms. Moreover, the world financial system has been disrupted by the prospect of widespread defaults on those debts. Because of the urgency of the present crisis, and because similar crises have recurred intermittently for at least 175 years, it is important to understand the fundamental features of the international macroeconomy and global financial markets that have contributed to this repeated instability. This project on developing country debt, undertaken by the National Bureau of Economic Research, provides a detailed analysis of the ongoing developing country debt crisis. The project focuses on the middle-income developing countries, particularly those in Latin America and East Asia, although many lessons of the study should apply as well to other, poorer debtor countries. The project analyzes the crisis from two perspectives, that of the international financial system as a whole (volume 1) and that of individual debtor countries (volumes 2 and 3).
Author: Briavel Holcomb Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA ISBN: 0313391130 Category : Social Science Languages : en Pages : 240
Book Description
At all levels of government--from the international to the local--public policies are formulated mainly by men, but their impacts are felt, sometimes differently, by women, men, and children. This book considers the impact of public policy on various aspects of women's lives, including sex and birth, marriage and death, work and child rearing, and women's responses to those policies. Written by scholars who have lived on five continents, the chapters span the First and Third Worlds, with several providing case illustrations of policies affecting women in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Written by scholars from several disciplines, the volume includes the fields of economics, politics, and planning. Literature also is covered, along with women's fiction as a source of women's opinions. The work is divided into two sections. The first section, Economic Policies and Migration, considers the impact of economic and demographic policies. The second section, Sex and Marriage, Violence and Control, considers policies relating to women's interpersonal relationships. Urban culture is discussed in an epilogue.
Author: Mr.Benedict J. Clements Publisher: International Monetary Fund ISBN: 1484339169 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 390
Book Description
Energy subsidies are aimed at protecting consumers, however, subsidies aggravate fiscal imbalances, crowd out priority public spending, and depress private investment, including in the energy sector. This book provides the most comprehensive estimates of energy subsidies currently available for 176 countries and an analysis of “how to do” energy subsidy reform, drawing on insights from 22 country case studies undertaken by the IMF staff and analyses carried out by other institutions.
Author: World Bank Publisher: World Bank Publications ISBN: 0821380834 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 386
Book Description
Sustainable infrastructure development is vital for Africa s prosperity. And now is the time to begin the transformation. This volume is the culmination of an unprecedented effort to document, analyze, and interpret the full extent of the challenge in developing Sub-Saharan Africa s infrastructure sectors. As a result, it represents the most comprehensive reference currently available on infrastructure in the region. The book covers the five main economic infrastructure sectors information and communication technology, irrigation, power, transport, and water and sanitation. 'Africa s Infrastructure: A Time for Transformation' reflects the collaboration of a wide array of African regional institutions and development partners under the auspices of the Infrastructure Consortium for Africa. It presents the findings of the Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD), a project launched following a commitment in 2005 by the international community (after the G8 summit at Gleneagles, Scotland) to scale up financial support for infrastructure development in Africa. The lack of reliable information in this area made it difficult to evaluate the success of past interventions, prioritize current allocations, and provide benchmarks for measuring future progress, hence the need for the AICD. Africa s infrastructure sectors lag well behind those of the rest of the world, and the gap is widening. Some of the main policy-relevant findings highlighted in the book include the following: infrastructure in the region is exceptionally expensive, with tariffs being many times higher than those found elsewhere. Inadequate and expensive infrastructure is retarding growth by 2 percentage points each year. Solving the problem will cost over US$90 billion per year, which is more than twice what is being spent in Africa today. However, money alone is not the answer. Prudent policies, wise management, and sound maintenance can improve efficiency, thereby stretching the infrastructure dollar. There is the potential to recover an additional US$17 billion a year from within the existing infrastructure resource envelope simply by improving efficiency. For example, improved revenue collection and utility management could generate US$3.3 billion per year. Regional power trade could reduce annual costs by US$2 billion. And deregulating the trucking industry could reduce freight costs by one-half. So, raising more funds without also tackling inefficiencies would be like pouring water into a leaking bucket. Finally, the power sector and fragile states represent particular challenges. Even if every efficiency in every infrastructure sector could be captured, a substantial funding gap of $31 billion a year would remain. Nevertheless, the African people and economies cannot wait any longer. Now is the time to begin the transformation to sustainable development.