IMF Staff Completes Program Review Mission to Benin

IMF News, March 30, 2018

Source details

Press Release No. 18/117; date: March 30, 2018.
A staff team led by Norbert Toé visited Cotonou from March 21 to April 1, 2018 to conduct the second review under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement with the Republic of Benin.
The IMF Executive Board is expected to consider the review in June 2018.
Benin’s ECF-supported program was approved by the IMF Executive Board in April 2017.

Estimated real GDP growth in 2017: 5.6 percent.
Growth drivers in 2017: record cotton production and the recovery of the Nigerian economy.
Inflation in 2017: turned positive for the year due to an increase in food and petroleum prices during the last quarter.
Current account in 2017: estimated to have widened marginally, reflecting an increase in goods import associated with scaling-up of investment.
Medium-term growth projection: projected to accelerate to just above 6 percent over 2019–22, driven by rising private investment.
Inflation medium-term expectation: expected to remain below the WAEMU convergence rate of 3 percent.
Fiscal consolidation target: programmed path aims to reduce the budget deficit (including grants) to below the WAEMU convergence criterion of 3 percent of GDP by 2019.

Overall assessment: Performance under the EFC-supported program remains broadly satisfactory.
Program benchmarks: Based on available data, all program monitoring indicators (quantitative and structural) set for end-December 2017 were met.
Notable outcomes relative to program targets:
- Domestic revenue mobilization exceeded program targets.
- Spending on priority social programs exceeded program targets.

Revenue and expenditure:
- Urged authorities to step up the mobilization of domestic revenue in the context of a medium-term strategy to sustain the strong revenue performance.
- Encouraged continued allocation of more resources to social programs.
Public investment and project appraisal:
- Efforts needed to strengthen the evaluation and prioritization of new investment projects.
- Improve the efficiency of public investment more generally.
Governance, transparency, and business environment:
- Agreed need to sustain efforts to strengthen governance and transparency.
- Accelerate reforms aimed at improving the business environment.
- Encouraged the government to operationalize the recently created inter-ministerial steering committee for the reforms of the business environment.

The team worked with the government and development partners such as the United Nations and the World Bank to assess sectoral plans for education, water and sanitation, and health consistent with Benin’s National Development Plan.
Initiated a costing exercise required to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in these three sectors by 2030.
Planned output: Based on this costing exercise in Benin and in a few low-income countries from other parts of the world, an overview paper on SDG costs and needed financing will be prepared.
Expected dissemination: It is expected that this overview paper would be presented to the U.N. General Assembly next fall.

Meetings included Romuald Wadagni, Minister of Economy and Finance; Abdoulaye Bio Tchané, Minister of State for Planning and Development; Alain Komaclo, National Director of the regional central bank, BCEAO; Jean-Baptiste Elias, President of the National Anti-Corruption Authority; and other senior government officials.
The team expressed thanks to the authorities for their strong cooperation and the constructive discussions.

International Monetary Fund — End-of-Mission statement (Press Release No. 18/117), March 30, 2018.