Following Macroeconomic Dimensions of Public Finance, this is the second volume of essays in honour of Vito Tanzi. It focuses on the importance of fiscal policy on the wholesale economic reforms that are sweeping the advanced, less developed and formally communist countries. Issues analyzed include: * the role of fiscal and budgetary policies in the process of reform * the impact of privatization on the exchequer and the dilemmas for social policy in times of fiscal austerity * the paradox of post-socialism and post-dirigisme that an efficient and harmonic move to a decontrolled, liberal market economy involves active state intervention * the methodological aspects relating to the proper assessment of fiscal policy mechanisms. This collection of essays contributes to the understanding of the channels and transmissions mechanisms of fiscal policies in the context of major economic reforms.

The collapse of central economic planning in many countries and the breakup of the Soviet Union have put into disarray systems of government revenues and expenditures in those countries. This collection of 16 papers, edited by Vito Tanzi, analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of fiscal policies under the old system of central planning and suggests ways to revitalize those policies in the newly emerging market economies.

Reforms are a necessary part of social and economic regulation. Each year, political pressure for economic reform becomes more prevalent, especially from various international organizations and business associations. Economic Reforms for Global Competitiveness is an essential reference source for the latest scholarly research on important factors of modern countries’ social and economic dynamics. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as human capital, project management, and fiscal reforms, this book is ideally designed for academicians, researchers, and students seeking the latest material on the role and impact of economic reforms.

This paper explores how fiscal policy can affect medium- to long-term growth. It identifies the main channels through which fiscal policy can influence growth and distills practical lessons for policymakers. The particular mix of policy measures, however, will depend on country-specific conditions, capacities, and preferences. The paper draws on the Fund’s extensive technical assistance on fiscal reforms as well as several analytical studies, including a novel approach for country studies, a statistical analysis of growth accelerations following fiscal reforms, and simulations of an endogenous growth model.

Reviews the performance of the Ghanaian economy for the period 1983 to 1991, aimed at assessing the impact of structural adjustment policies in different areas of the economy.

As economic reform in developing countries has shifted from macroeconomic stabilization to liberalization, opportunities for legislators to influence the process and outcome of reform have increased and their role has become more important. This book focuses attention on differences in institutional structure, in political parties and electoral rules, to show how they create incentives that can explain the varying ways in which legislators respond to policy initiatives from the executive branch. In Argentina and the Philippines, presidents proposed similar fiscal reforms in the 1990s: expanding tax bases, strengthening tax administration, and redesigning tax revenue-sharing with subnational governments. Drawing on archival research and interviews with policy makers, Kent Eaton follows the path of legislation in these three areas from initial proposal to final law to reveal how it was shaped by the legislators participating in the process. Obstacles to the adoption of reform, he demonstrates, are greater in candidate-centered systems like the Philippines&’ (where the cultivation of personal reputations is paramount) than in party-centered systems like Argentina&’s (where loyalty to party leaders is emphasized). To test his argument further, Eaton looks finally at other kinds of reform ventured in these two countries and at tax reforms attempted in some other countries.

This collection focuses on the ways in which federalism has affected and been affected by economic reform, especially global integration. The editors and contributors focus in particular on the political economy of institutional and economic change - how the division of authority between national and subnational governments shapes debates over policy changes, as well as how the changing economic environment creates incentives to modify the basic agreements between levels of governments. Each chapter contains a historical overview, and an in-depth account of division of authority, lines of accountability, and legislative, bureaucratic, and other arenas in which the levels of government interact for a particular country. The analyses are based on reform (or non-reform) episodes for each country - most from recent history, but some spanning the century. As a collection, the country studies span a range of developing and industrial countries with varying political systems.

Ukraine may have taken a "gradualist" approach to economic reform, but the results have been no better than in Russia. The editors have assembled the leading specialists on the Ukrainian economy, including officials from major Ukrainian and international economic institutions, to outline the major problems of the economy, analyze the initial phases of economic reform in Ukraine, assess their outcomes, and chart the way forward.

'Frank Bönker has done a masterful job. . . This is probably the best book available on this important subject. and its significance is not limited to studies of postcommunist societies. It has important theoretical implications for everyone interested in the Political Economy of Policy Reform perspective within the field of comparative political economy.' - John L. Campbell, Slavic Review

The Indian Economy Since 1991: Economic Reforms and Performance is the outcome of a collaborative effort by 28 experts who have made significant contributions in research toward the Indian economy. Using a data-based, analytical approach to key economic issues and problems, coupled with extensive coverage and a critical and in-depth analysis of the developments in all major sub-sectors of the Indian economy, this edited volume examines the impact of the reforms on various fronts such as economic performance, employment, unemployment, planning process, financial and fiscal sectors, external sector, agriculture, industry, infrastructure, health, education, poverty and federal finance since 1991.