Description:
Belarus faces significant fiscal
challenges, stemming from the structural features of its
economic model. As of mid-2011, under a severe exchange rate
and balance of payments crisis, the Government needs to
pursue a carefully sequenced strategy of macroeconomic
adjustment coupled with a strong program of structural
reforms. This programmatic Public Expenditure Review (PER)
fiscal policy options to simultaneously tackle the need for
fiscal consolidation as well as the structural challenges
with significant fiscal linkages. The options for fiscal
reform proposed in this report are estimated to generate
average net fiscal savings of 3.9 percent of Gross Domestic
product (GDP) annually over the medium term. Given the
implied structural changes in the expenditure program, the
fiscal impact of these reforms extends beyond the four year
projection period.