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Cigarette prices in Japan are lower than those in most other high-income countries. A more striking fact is that cigarette tax revenues have been kept almost flat at just over two trillion JPY (Japanese yen; 18.2 billion US dollars) over more than three decades, despite steadily declining cigarette sales and seemingly weakening pressure from stakeholders with a vested interest in the tobacco industry. We attempted to examine trends and determinants of cigarette tax increases in Japan. In particular, we hypothesized that the Japanese finance ministry adjusts cigarette taxes to meet a revenue target. Under this hypothesis, we searched for the most plausible amount of the minimum target of tax revenue that corresponds to cigarette tax increases over the past 37 years (1985–2021) using public data on cigarette sales and taxes. The results revealed that two trillion JPY was the minimal revenue target that could plausibly explain the increase in cigarette tax. In addition, the timing and magnitude of cigarette tax increases have been successfully set to maintain stable tax revenues. A key determinant of cigarette tax increases in Japan has been hard revenue targets, rather than public health concerns.

This report presents the findings of a study of functions carried out by Central Finance Agencies (CFAs) that was financed jointly by the Bank Netherlands Partnership Program (BNPP), the Korean Trust Fund (KTF) and the World Bank over a three-year period from July 2008 to mid-2011. CFAs are not a single organization or entity of government but a group of ministries and agencies, of which the ministry of finance (MoF) is normally the most prominent, with collective responsibility for the design and implementation of a country's vast array of financial and fiscal policies and operations. Such policies and operations include macro fiscal analysis and forecasting, budget preparation and execution, accounting and reporting, cash and debt management, fiscal risk analysis, public procurement, tax policy and customs/revenue administration, and the regulation of financial institutions. In most developing countries, the role of CFAs is the public resources nexus of all issues with a political economy dimension. The allocation of roles and responsibilities for central finance functions among the finance ministry itself and other government agencies varies substantially from country to country. Chapter one of the reports defines the concept of a CFA-which is the array of government organizations (including notably the finance ministry) that carry out 16 core finance functions of government (budget preparation and execution, tax policy and revenue administration, procurement, and so on), that are central to the management of public finances. Chapter two summarizes the main issues and themes arising from the case studies. Substantial progress was made in identifying institutional factors that affect the capabilities of CFAs, including their organizational structures, linkages with stakeholders, availability and use of staff with appropriate skills in economics, accountancy and finance. Chapter three describes the CFA database and the questionnaire that was used by Country Management Units (CMUs) and others in compiling it. Chapter four presents the main conclusions and operational implications of the study. 'Political economy' analysis is not only important but fundamental to successful strengthening of CFAs.

Public participation in the formulation of fiscal policy is particularly salient, since public finances is a topic relevant for the public in general, although it requires certain level of knowledge about fiscal matters. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the level and the type of public interest in the area of fiscal policy, and to assess the influence of the interested public on the regulation of fiscal policy. In order to do so, authors analyze the implementation of electronic public consultations (e-consultations) in Croatia conducted by the Ministry of Finance in a three-year period. Research findings suggest that even though the level of participation in fiscal policy area does not significantly derogate from the average of e-consultations at the state level, public interest appears to be quite well organized and informed, which positively affects the level of administrative responsiveness in this policy area.

In Fall 2008, the Democratic candidate for president, Barack Obama, asked then-president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Timothy Geithner, whether he would consider serving as treasury secretary in a future administration. According to his autobiography, Geithner pointed out that he lacked the necessary political skills. The newly elected president from the ‘left’ party on the American political spectrum nevertheless chose the ‘economist’ after the election, and in the midst of a financial crisis. The new treasury secretary received daily training from the president’s chief of staff in an attempt to bolster his political skills but never really felt comfortable in his political role.

Ministers of Finance in post-conflict countries face unique challenges. At a turbulent time when both financial and human resources are limited, what should a finance ministry do - and, more importantly, not do? Which countries offer successful examples of reform that can be used as models for finance ministry reform in other countries? Reforming Fiscal and Economic Management in Afghanistan sets out the impressive policy and institutional reforms made by the interim and transitional administrations of Afghanistan since the Bonn conference in November 2001. It explores the complexities of managing the significant amount of development assistance and donor interest while balancing the need to respond to donor priorities and to build strong public-sector institutions. The book demonstrates that the budget must be the primary vehicle for developing and then implementing policy, and shows how this strategy has shaped the renewal of Afghanistan's finance ministry. The volume closes with a specific agenda for finance ministry reform and restructuring. Although this edited volume is focused on Afghanistan, the questions raised have broad relevance for other countries seeking to restart economic and fiscal management following conflict. Reforming Fiscal and Economic Management in Afghanistan will be of great interest to finance ministries, national governments, international and nongovernmental organizations, and research institutions, and to anyone interested in post-conflict reconstruction and reform.

This volume provides an analytical framework and operational approaches needed for the implementation of results-based accountability. The volume makes a major contribution to the literature on public management and evaluation. Major subject areas covered in this book include: performance based accountability, e-government, legal and institutional framework to hold government to account; fighting corruption; external accountability and the role of supreme audit institutions on detecting fraud and corruption.

Unlock the transformative power of microfinance for global poverty reduction.This insightful title explores how to build inclusive financial systems that empower the poor and drive economic growth in developing countries.Drawing on a decade of CGAP experience, it offers a comprehensive framework for expanding access to financial services for all.

The private health sector was officially recognized in the Republic of Congo over 20 years ago June 6, 1988, establishing the conditions for the independent practice of medicine and the medical-related and pharmaceutical professions. The Congolese government recently expressed its commitment to working with the private health sector in order to strengthen the health system, improve the health of the population and preserve the basic human right to a healthy life through the National Health Care Policy, which it adopted in 2003, the 2007-2011 National Health Development Plan and the 2010 Health Care Services Development Program. Throughout these various documents there is an acknowledgement that the lack of coordination with the private health sector is a weakness of the health system. Nevertheless, the scarcity of information about the private sector in policy and planning documents suggests that the government's engagement with the private health sector is limited. There is no official government policy on the private health sector, or strategies or working plans to encourage cooperation between the public and private sectors. The objective of this assessment was to better determine the role, position, and importance of the private sector within the health system, in order to identify the limitations to its development as well as ways it can be integrated into the efforts to meet the objectives of the Plan national de developpement sanitaire (PNDS) [National Health Development Plan]. The World Bank Group contracted with the Results for Development Institute (R4D, United States) and Health Research for Action (HERA, Belgium) as well as with a team of local consultants, to conduct a 'study of the private health sector in the Republic of Congo.' This study was conducted in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Population (MSP), which arranged and oversaw a steering committee consisting of actors from the public and private sectors to facilitate and guide the study. The goal of the study and the workshops was a concrete plan of action for the health sector that could be used by the Congolese government, the private sector in the Republic of Congo, and international development partners. Certain aspects of the action plan should be included in the work programs of the Programme de developpement des services de sante (PDSS) [Health System Development Project] for the years 2011-2013.

This report addresses the large flood exposures of Central Europe and proposes efficient financial and risk transfer mechanisms to mitigate fiscal losses from natural catastrophes. In particular, the Visegrad countries (V-4) of Central Europe, namely, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and the Slovak Republic, have such tremendous potential flood damages that reliance on budgetary appropriations or even European Union (EU) funds in such circumstances becomes ineffective and does not provide needed cash funds for the quick response and recovery needed to minimize economic disruptions. The report is primarily addressed to the governments of the region, which should build into their fiscal planning the necessary contingent funding mechanisms, based on their exposures. The report is addressed to finance ministries and also to the insurance and securities regulators and the private insurance and capital markets, which may all play a role in the proposed mechanisms. An arrangement using a multi-country pool with a hazard-triggered insurance payout mechanism complemented by contingent financing is proposed, to better manage these risks and avoid major fiscal volatility and disruption.

Finance ministries are increasingly involved in UN climate finance negotiations, yet this development received very limited attention in the literature on climate finance or climate negotiations. It is not obvious from the literature on bureaucratic politics how these ministries will position themselves on climate finance: they may frame climate finance as expenditure to be limited or as an instrument for correcting the market failure of climate change. This paper investigates which frames have characterised the positions of finance ministries on key issues in the climate finance negotiations, and whether the use of a given frame corresponds to particular factors. Case studies of Denmark, India, Indonesia and the USA based on official documents and interviews show that the position of each finance ministry is generally consistent with one particular frame. The Indonesian and Danish finance ministries predominantly framed climate finance as a way of correcting a market failure. The Indian Ministry of Finance emphasised Common but Differentiated Responsibilities, which fits with the budget frame. The US Treasury’s position similarly fits with the budget frame while sharing elements of the market failure frame. Finance ministries that had the lead on climate finance were more likely follow the budget frame. The use of both frames cuts across the divide between industrialised and emerging economies. With the exception of the USA, left- and right-wing governments were equally likely to adopt either frame. These findings indicate that strengthening finance ministry forums built around the market failure frame can be a way of reducing norm fragmentation.