2 The design of Fund programs in SSA – whether ESAF, PRGF, PSI etc – in terms of their macroeconomic conditionalities (the quantitative performance criteria) – is fundamentally the same whether viewed in a cross sectional perspective (across different countries in SSA) or through time (e.g. over the last 25 years).
This is despite their being substantial heterogeneity among SSA economies and the significant changes that have occurred within the same economies over the last 25 years. This begs three questions which I want to address. 1  See Brixova and Ndikumana (2010) and IMF (2010). 2  IMF (2008) sets out the rationale for the IMF’s engagement in Low Income Countries (LICs).