Republic of Serbia Public Finance Review 2015 : Toward a Sustainable and Efficient Fiscal Policy
Since the global economic and financial crisis of 2008, Serbia has struggled with a weak economy and a deteriorating fiscal position. Until 2008, fiscal deficits were moderate and public debt declined significantly. Since the start of the global ec...
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| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2016
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/09/24982245/serbia-public-finance-review-toward-sustainable-efficient-fiscal-policy http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24274 |
| Summary: | Since the global economic and financial
crisis of 2008, Serbia has struggled with a weak economy and
a deteriorating fiscal position. Until 2008, fiscal deficits
were moderate and public debt declined significantly. Since
the start of the global economic and financial crisis in
2008, however, Serbia has struggled with the interlinked
problems of minimal growth and unfavorable fiscal dynamics.
As economic activity has stagnated, revenues have fallen and
expenditures, particularly mandatory spending on pensions
and wages, have remained high. At the same time, structural
fiscal issues, such as continued state support to
state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and tax administration
inefficiencies, have been a drag on growth. As a result of
these pressures, general government fiscal deficits averaged
5.6 percent of GDP a year between 2009 and 2014. Reflecting
the high fiscal deficits and poor economic growth, Serbia’s
public debt has more than doubled, from 34 percent of GDP in
2008 to 71 percent at yearend-2014. The objective of this
report is therefore two-fold: (i) policy options and
recommendations (beyond those built into the current
program) that would help solidify the ongoing fiscal
consolidation program and help achieve public debt
sustainability over the medium term; and (ii) given
near-term fiscal constraints, identify opportunities for
enhancing the efficiency, quality, and equity of current
public spending on health, education, and social protection
over the medium term |
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