Authors: Ken Gwilliam; Ajay Kumar

Source: World Bank Research Observer, Volume 18, Number 1, 2003 , pp. 113-128(16)

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Abstract:

Underfunded, inefficient road maintenance is a perennial problem in many developing economies. To address it, some countries have created “second-generation” road funds that are financed by fuel levies and managed by boards representing the interests of road users. Macroeconomists often oppose such funds, arguing that this earmarking of revenue reduces fiscal flexibility. Some argue that such road funds should be seen as an interim step toward fully commercialized road maintenance or good public sector governance—and hence subject to sunset provisions. Decisions on whether to retain (or create) such funds should then be based on their effects on resource allocation, operational efficiency, and rent seeking. Using evidence on new road funds in Africa, this article finds that they have not undermined fiscal flexibility. Moreover, they have improved the administration of road funding (in terms of execution capability) and its outputs (in terms of road conditions). So, although criteria for assessing road funds remain relevant, the funds should not automatically be considered temporary mechanisms. But when establishing new funds, government's continued role in approving spending on road maintenance should be explicitly recognized.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/wbro/lkg004

Publication date: 2003-01-01

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• The World Bank Research Observer seeks to inform nonspecialist readers about research being undertaken within the Bank and outside the Bank in areas of economics relevant for development policy. Requiring only a minimal background in economic analysis, its surveys and overviews of key issues in development economics research are intended for policymakers, project officers, journalists keeping up to date, and teachers and students of development economics and related disciplines. Papers for the Observer are not sent out to referees, but all articles published are assessed and approved by the Editorial Board, which includes three to four distinguished economists from outside the Bank. The Observer has nearly 1,500 subscribers in OECD countries and nearly 10,000 subscribers in developing countries.
  
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