Publication

This report addresses the controversy that surrounds IMF-supported programs in low-income countries and their effect on the health sector. The report explores the interaction between IMF-supported macroeconomic policies and government health spending, drawing upon case studies of Mozambique, Rwanda and Zambia. The report finds that IMF-supported fiscal programs have been too conservative, that the IMF Board and management have not made sufficiently clear what is expected of IMF staff in exploring the macroeconomic consequences of alternative aid scenarios, and that wage bill ceilings have been overused in IMF programs and should be limited to the circumstances where a loss of control over payrolls threatens macroeconomic stability.