## Challenges to the Swedish Welfare State

_Occasional Papers, October 6, 1995_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Challenges to the Swedish Welfare State](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/occasional-papers/issues/2016/12/30/challenges-to-the-swedish-welfare-state-616)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/publications/occasional-papers/issues/2016/12/30/challenges-to-the-swedish-welfare-state-616/index.md)
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## Bibliographic details
- Authors: Desmond Lachman, Ramana Ramaswamy, J. H. Green, Robert P. Hagemann, Adam Bennett
- Published: October 6, 1995
- Series: Occasional Papers
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781557754868.084

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### Summary
- Sweden's economy in the early 1990s has been characterized by a deep recession, high unemployment, a ballooning public sector budgete deficit, and a decline in the value of the currency—developments that have raised questions about the country's capacity to sustain its comprehensive welfare state.
- This study provides an analysis of recent economic developments in a longer-term context and assesses their implications for future policies.

### Core findings and context
- Economic conditions highlighted:
  - "deep recession"
  - "high unemployment"
  - "a ballooning public sector budgete deficit"
  - "a decline in the value of the currency"
- The study situates these developments in a longer-term context to evaluate implications for the sustainability of Sweden's comprehensive welfare state.

### Policy implications and analytical focus
- The paper assesses implications of early-1990s economic developments for future policies relating to:
  - Expenditure
  - Pension spending and Pensions
  - Labor and Labor markets, including labor market program considerations
  - Public debt and government net wealth
  - Prices and Export prices
  - Tax payment and trade performance
- Keywords indicating analytical themes: consumption shock, Europe, Export prices, government net wealth, labor market program, Labor markets, OP, pension, Pension spending, Pensions, recession, tax payment, trade performance.

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_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/occasional-papers/issues/2016/12/30/challenges-to-the-swedish-welfare-state-616_