IMF Fiscal and Monetary Policies Impact on the Capacity to Address HIV/AIDS and TB Crises

This is the synthesis report produced jointly by the Center for Economic Governance and AIDS in Africa (CEGAA) and RESULTS Educational Fund, with support from the Open Society Institute.

Countries in sub-Saharan Africa face epidemics of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, requiring major increases in both financial and human resources to address. As a prerequisite for accessing development assistance, however, low-income countries must develop their economic policies through programs with the International Monetary Fund. The policies borne out of these programs shape the size of national budgets, impacting health budgets in turn.

These reports examine policy conditions attached to IMF programs, as well as the assumptions that underlie them, in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia. They find evidence that IMF programs in these countries have restricted options for higher levels of public spending, which could be used for health. The reports provide recommendations for pursuing alternative policies that could provide greater flexibility for increasing spending, necessary to reverse the toll of HIV/AIDS and TB and to expand the public health workforce.