Abuja — The World Bank today released the Fiscal Governance Reform in Nigeria: Lessons from the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability Program (SFTAS), a report reviewing one of Nigeria’s most significant subnational fiscal reform initiatives. The report offers an in-depth analysis of how the SFTAS Program, implemented between 2018 and 2022, strengthened fiscal transparency,…
The South African Reserve Bank has flagged cryptocurrencies as a new risk to domestic fiscal stability. It said this in the second edition of its Financial Stability Review for 2025, which covers the six-month-period from June to November. In a presentation on Tuesday, Nicola Brink, head of department for financial stability at the Reserve Bank,…
Increasing government revenue and better managing debt can help foster resilience and accelerate growth Over the past six months the realignment of global priorities and increasingly turbulent external conditions have continued to test sub-Saharan Africa. Yet the region’s economies are proving resilient. As our recent economic outlook for the region shows, economic growth is projected to hold…
At the recent Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Kigali, a bold proposal took centre stage: African telecom operators and government leaders called for the removal of import duties and VAT on smartphones priced under $100. This clarion call came with the aim to accelerate internet access, digital skills, and participation in the digital economy for…
Atlantide Phototravel | Corbis Documentary | Getty Images Japan’s government bond market, long shielded by the Bank of Japan’s yield curve control and decades of deflation, faces a test of faith under Sanae Takaichi, who is set to be the country’s first female prime minister. Markets are betting that Takaichi, who won the race to…
Geneva — Recent proposals to relocate UN operations to lower-cost duty stations ignore demonstrable economic patterns. Empirical evidence suggests that establishing UN hubs often triggers localized inflation, negating projected savings. Case Study: UN Presence in Nairobi While city-wide inflation is driven by national policies, population growth, infrastructure deficits and global shocks, the UN significantly increased…
Washington — The World Bank has approved $115 million in concessional financing to support Senegal’s efforts to improve public debt sustainability, strengthen public financial management, and increase domestic resource mobilization. The financing, provided through the International Development Association (IDA), will help implement the government’s flagship reform program, the 2025-2029 Senegal Program for Transparency in Public…
