Namibia: Selected Issues

IMF Staff Country Reports, December 8, 2016

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Namibia: Selected Issues

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Bibliographic details

• Published: December 8, 2016
• Series: IMF Staff Country Reports
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781475559088.002

Summary and main findings

• This Selected Issues paper assesses the impact of alternative fiscal consolidation strategies on Namibia’s growth.
• It uses a model developed at the IMF to gain insights on what would be a growth-friendly composition of the fiscal adjustment.
• The analysis suggests that a combined strategy of revenue and expenditure measures has lower negative effects on growth than a pure expenditure-based adjustment.
• Structural reforms improving the efficiency of public investment can further reduce the negative effect of consolidation on growth, and potentially strengthen growth.
• Overall conclusion: minimizing the negative impact of fiscal consolidation on growth requires combining revenue and expenditure measures, together with fiscal structural reforms.

Policy recommendations and implications

• Adopt a combined fiscal consolidation strategy that includes both revenue-enhancing measures and expenditure restraint rather than relying solely on expenditure cuts.
• Implement fiscal structural reforms aimed at improving the efficiency of public investment to mitigate and possibly reverse adverse growth effects from consolidation.

Methods and scope

• Analytical approach: model developed at the IMF used to evaluate alternative consolidation compositions and their growth impact.
• Focus: growth-friendly composition of fiscal adjustment; impact of public investment efficiency improvements.

Subject classifications and keywords

• Subject: Banking, Employment, Financial institutions, Fiscal consolidation, Fiscal policy, Labor, Labor force, Mutual funds, Public debt, Unemployment rate
• Keywords: Africa, consolidation strategy, copy, CR, D.C., D.C., Employment, EMPLOYMENT growth, equity portfolio, Fiscal consolidation, GDP, GDP growth, Global, growth impact, IMF staff estimate, International Monetary Fund Washington, International Monetary Fund Washington, investment, ISCR, Labor force, Mutual funds, publication service, staff team of the International Monetary Fund, Unemployment rate

Content in this bundle

• Namibia: Selected Issues: IMF Country Report No. 16/374, November 17, 2016
  • Namibia: Selected Issues: IMF Country Report No. 16/374, November 17, 2016 (Markdown version)
  • Namibia: Selected Issues: IMF Country Report No. 16/374, November 17, 2016 (PDF)