Benin: Technical Assistance Report-Public Investment Management Assessment

IMF Staff Country Reports, January 27, 2020

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Canonical URL: Benin: Technical Assistance Report-Public Investment Management Assessment

The Public Investment Management Assessment (PIMA) of Benin found an institutional framework of high quality but ineffective implementation.
The mission applied the PIMA methodology used in several countries, focusing on:
- assessing the institutional strengths for each institution in the analytical framework, and
- evaluating effective implementation.
In 2016 the authorities adopted an ambitious investment plan, the government action program (PAG), designed to stimulate Benin's economic and social development.
The PAG identifies investments in flagship sectors and provides recourse primarily to new financing mechanisms, such as public-private partnerships, to realize these investments.
The report highlights that, in connection with PAG implementation, the financial incidences of selected projects should be fully accounted for and reflected in the budget documentation to ensure their sustainability.
Enhanced coordination of planning and budget exercises would encourage a better consideration of recurrent expenditure.

Institutional quality: High-quality institutional framework exists.
Implementation gap: Effectiveness is limited by weak implementation.
Investment planning: PAG (2016) is ambitious and central to development strategy.
Financing approach: PAG relies primarily on new financing mechanisms, including public-private partnerships (PPPs).
Fiscal sustainability: Financial incidences of selected projects need full accounting and reflection in budget documentation.
Expenditure management: Better coordination between planning and budget exercises is needed to account for recurrent expenditure.

Fully account for and reflect the financial incidences of selected PAG projects in budget documentation to ensure sustainability.
Enhance coordination between planning and budget exercises to improve consideration of recurrent expenditures associated with investment projects.
Utilize and manage new financing mechanisms (including PPPs) with attention to their fiscal implications.

Subject: Budget planning and preparation; Capital spending; Expenditure; Public financial management (PFM); Public investment and public-private partnerships (PPP); Public investment spending
Keywords: Africa; Budget planning and preparation; Capital spending; cash resource; central government; commitment authorization; CR; decision-making authorities; executive authorities; government action program; investment project; ISCR; local government; payment appropriation; PPP support unit; public investment; Public investment and public-private partnerships (PPP); Public investment spending; Sub-Saharan Africa; West Africa