Fiscal Policy and Monetary Integration in the ECOWAS
Date
2021-03
Authors
Onye, Kenneth
Umoh, Okon J.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Economic Research Consortium
Abstract
Those with dissenting views regarding the structure of monetary union
arrangement in the ECOWAS often argue that the macroeconomic convergence
criteria have hampered the ability of countries in the region to stabilize their
economies with appropriate counter-cyclical fiscal policy. We test the empirical
merit of this assertion and found no support for this view. Instead, discretionary
fiscal policy has become counter-cyclical in ECOWAS after the introduction of
convergence criteria. In specifics, we found a switch from pro-cyclical fiscal policy
making in the pre-convergence era (1995-2002) to a counter-cyclical fiscal policy