Niger - Assessment Letter for the World Bank and the European Union

Niger’s macroeconomic performance in 2010 was strong, mainly reflecting the exceptional 2010–11 harvest. The bumper crop and the completion of the year-long transition to democracy have also brightened the near-term economic outlook. The recently-adopted revised 2011 budget foresees an increase in expenditure financed in large part by the expected pick-up in external support, helped by the freeing up of resources as ill-targeted fuel price subsidies are gradually phased out. The authorities have expressed a wish to initiate discussions on an economic program that could be supported by the Fund under the Extended Credit Facility in the coming months.