Madagascar - Public finance

In 2000, Madagascar started the preparation of a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. By the end of the year, the IMF and the World Bank agreed that Madagascar had filled the requirements of the HIPC and together they reached a decision point for debt relief. As a result, various organizations, including the IMF, the Paris Club, and the African Development Bank awarded Madagascar grants or debt cancellations worth a total of $355 million dollars in 2001.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimates that in 1998 Madagascar's central government took in revenues of approximately $553 million and had expenditures of $735 million. Overall, the government registered a deficit of approximately $182 million. External debt totaled $4.5 billion.

The following table shows an itemized breakdown of government revenues. The percentages were calculated from data reported by the International Monetary Fund. The dollar amounts (millions) are based on the CIA estimates provided above.