Article
Red ink rising
The road to fiscal sustainability
Nations, states, and cities across the globe are facing an existential threat in the form of a massive fiscal imbalance between expected revenues and promised expenditures. Closing this gap will take more than simply cutting programs or creating new policies, it will require fundamentally different thinking.
In the wake of a global recession, cities, states, and nations around the world are bracing to deal with a rising wave of red ink. As debt grows, governments fear they may lose financial foothold and tumble into The Gap. Though it may appear to be purely an issue of the bottom line, The Gap represents more than just the imbalance between revenue and expenditures – it also encompasses governments’ struggle to improve performance and catch up to a new economy.
With shifting demographics leading to rising costs in health care, social security, and pensions, the need to tackle the growing Gap is more important than ever. But, the road to fiscal balance will not be an easy path to tread – there is no definite solution, quick fix, or step-by-step guide. The journey will entail a concurrent navigation of three distinct phases: conceptual, political blueprint, and transformation.
The road to fiscal sustainability