{
  "title": "Measuring Financial Barriers Among East African Community Countries",
  "publication": "IMF Working Papers, August 1, 2010",
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  "summary": "This paper seeks to quantify existing financial barriers among East African Community (EAC) member countries based on analysis of each member country’s foreign exchange market.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Research objective and methodology",
      "content": "- Objective: Quantify existing financial barriers among East African Community (EAC) member countries based on analysis of each member country’s foreign exchange market.\n- Primary methodological contribution: Generation of an aggregate measure of financial barriers for the three relatively more advanced members (Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania) using forward foreign exchange and interbank interest rate data.\n- Key data and concepts employed: forward foreign exchange, interbank interest rates, interest rate parity, spot market."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Main empirical findings",
      "content": "- The paper generates an aggregate measure of financial barriers for Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania using forward foreign exchange and interbank interest rate data.\n- Empirical results, corroborated by other evidence such as:\n  - levels of development of the financial markets, and\n  - restrictions on capital flows,\n  indicate the following ranking of financial openness within the EAC:\n  - Kenya is the EAC’s most financially open country.\n  - Uganda is the next most financially open.\n  - Tanzania is the least financially open of the three.\n- Conclusion drawn: The fact that the three countries exhibit different degrees of financial openness suggests that financial integration in the EAC region has a way to go."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Policy implications and interpretation",
      "content": "- Differences in measured financial openness across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania imply incomplete financial integration in the EAC.\n- Policy relevance centers on:\n  - identifying and addressing market frictions revealed by forward FX and interbank rate deviations from interest rate parity,\n  - considering legal or regulatory restrictions on capital flows that corroborate measured barriers,\n  - prioritizing sequencing and reforms to deepen financial market development to support regional integration.\n\n---\n\n Content in this bundle\n\n- wp10194\n  - wp10194 (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - wp10194 (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n\n---\n\nSource: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/measuring-financial-barriers-among-east-african-community-countries-24162"
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    "Authors: Yi David Wang",
    "Published: August 1, 2010",
    "Series: IMF Working Papers",
    "DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781455205240.001",
    "Objective: Quantify existing financial barriers among East African Community (EAC) member countries based on analysis of each member country’s foreign exchange market.",
    "Primary methodological contribution: Generation of an aggregate measure of financial barriers for the three relatively more advanced members (Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania) using forward foreign exchange and interbank interest rate data.",
    "Key data and concepts employed: forward foreign exchange, interbank interest rates, interest rate parity, spot market.",
    "The paper generates an aggregate measure of financial barriers for Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania using forward foreign exchange and interbank interest rate data.",
    "Empirical results, corroborated by other evidence such as:",
    "Conclusion drawn: The fact that the three countries exhibit different degrees of financial openness suggests that financial integration in the EAC region has a way to go.",
    "Differences in measured financial openness across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania imply incomplete financial integration in the EAC.",
    "Policy relevance centers on:",
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