IMF austerity policies linked to declining public health, education services in Africa

A new report by ActionAid International has sharply criticized International Monetary Fund (IMF) austerity measures for the worsening state of public health and education services in Ethiopia and across Africa. Titled “The Human Cost of Public Sector Cuts in Africa,” the report highlights how IMF-driven budget cuts are severely impacting frontline workers and the communities they serve.Based on a survey of 616 individuals across six African countries—including Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, and Nigeria—the study reveals that austerity policies have led to increased workloads, declining real incomes, and resource shortages among teachers and health professionals.In Ethiopia, 91% of teachers surveyed expressed a strong desire to leave the profession, the highest among the countries studied. The report attributes this to inadequate pay and deteriorating working conditions. Since 2020, 84% of teachers across the six countries reported a 10% to 50% decline in real income, with Ethiopian teachers facing rising student-teacher ratios—especially in rural areas where the ratio increased by 80%.The lack of resources is acute: 95% of Ethiopian teachers reported insufficient funds for essential school materials, forcing 73% to purchase supplies out of pocket and 64% to share limited resources to keep classrooms running.Similarly, healthcare workers face severe challenges. Ninety percent of Ethiopian health professionals reported significant disruptions to maternity services due to budget cuts, while all surveyed public health experts noted sharp increases in drug prices, with Ethiopia among the hardest hit. Additionally, 97% of health workers said their salaries no longer cover basic living costs, exacerbated by growing workloads.ActionAid urges the Ethiopian government, in collaboration with the Ministries of Finance, Health, and Education, to allocate at least 20% of the national budget to education and 15% to healthcare—benchmarks aligned with international standards such as the Abuja Declaration.The report calls for urgent reforms including progressive tax policies, debt cancellation or relief, and an end to IMF-imposed austerity and privatization demands. It advocates for democratizing debt decisions through frameworks like the proposed UN Sovereign Debt Framework Agreement and UN Tax Framework Agreement.Emphasizing gender equality, the report urges adherence to commitments from the Beijing Declaration and Action Forum, highlighting the importance of integrating women’s rights into economic policies.The study criticizes current debt sustainability analyses for prioritizing debt repayment over essential public spending on health, education, and social protection. It calls for incorporating human rights and development impacts into these assessments to ensure social spending is recognized as a vital part of public budgets.ActionAid warns that austerity-driven cuts risk deepening poverty, worsening inequality, and fueling social unrest. The report urges the IMF and World Bank to end austerity policies and public sector wage reductions in African countries, and instead support reforms that boost government revenues through fair taxation and debt restructuring.