Publications and Research

Over the last half-decade, a significant number of the world’s poorest countries have seen major scale-ups in funding for AIDS and other critical health and education efforts. Many countries, however, are not able to spend these resources to hire the health care workers or teachers they desperately need, because International Monetary Fund (IMF) policies often impose overly strict spending limits on countries. These IMF limits translate into budget and hiring ceilings — often disproportionately impacting education and health. Without the ability to increase government spending above the limits imposed by the IMF, poor countries are often unable to use additional foreign aid to help improve the health and education of their people and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Literature Review: The IMF’s Policies are Unnecessarily Restrictive