This study explores the complex relationship between trust, corruption, and tax compliance in fragile states. It examines factors influencing public trust in three government branches: the ruling party (a proxy for the executive), the parliament, and the local government, and examines whether trust in these arms of government impacts tax compliance. We conducted this investigation using Afrobarometer survey data from Guinea, Mali, Sudan, and Zimbabwe as case studies. The study found that restoring public trust and promoting tax compliance are tangible outcomes arising from a steadfast commitment to electoral integrity, transparency, and accountability. This interplay becomes more vital within the framework of state fragility, where institutions are highly strained. The study highlighted that the existence of rampant corruption reduces trust in the ruling party, parliament, and local government council. Furthermore, the joint interaction between corruption and lack of trust significantly undermines the willingness of taxpayers to adhere to tax administration laws. These insights emphasise that combating corruption becomes not only a governance step but also vital to state stability. Thus, African governments should prioritise electoral integrity and combat corruption through enhanced accountability to pave the way for improved governance, enhanced trust, and a more stable path toward a global powerhouse.

Output response to discretionary fiscal policy is a key aspect of examining various theories, findings of empirical studies and delivering guidance to policymakers. This study analyses the output response to unanticipated fiscal spending shocks under several structural economic characteristic factors, including business cycle states, debt burden, openness of the economy, exchange rate regimes and political governance regime, using annual data from 40 countries in SSA spanning from 2000 to 2019 in a panel threshold vector auto‐regression model. The findings indicate that fiscal spending multipliers have much larger effects on output in times of recession, in economies operating under lower trade openness, a fixed exchange rate, low‐debt burden, restricted capital mobility, less financial development and a democratic governance regime. Based on the results, the discretionary countercyclical fiscal policy and optimal fiscal policy action are recommended. Moreover, in order to have effective fiscal policy must target hand‐to‐mouth consumers (non‐Ricardian consumers) and firms with limited liquidity, concentrating on social services and social protection to increase short‐term demand. Likewise, A proper fiscal monetary policy mix should be considered with other structural measures to maximising the positive effects of the fiscal expansion.

Institutional quality (InQ) plays an important role in shaping economic growth (ECG), influencing how economies develop and perform. The literature addresses the nexus between InQ and ECG and the link between health and ECG; findings are often contradictory, creating knowledge gaps. Importantly, research on the interplay between InQ, health, and ECG in Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries is particularly limited. This study aims to address this gap by evaluating how health impacts ECG, with an emphasis on the mediating role of InQ in the health–growth nexus in SSA. This study examines these interplays across 35 SSA countries from 2012 to 2022. The life expectancy at birth (LEX) and real gross domestic product per capita (GDP) are used as proxies for health outcomes and ECG, respectively. The system generalised method of moments estimator is employed to analyse data. Results show that the LEX has a strong positive effect on economic growth in SSA countries. Furthermore, the InQ indicators (such as control of corruption, government effectiveness, rule of law and political stability, and absence of violence) are positively correlated with ECG. When the LEX interacts with InQ indicators, InQ is identified as a key channel through which LEX influences ECG. The findings confirm that InQ plays a crucial role in the health–growth nexus, with the positive impact of LEX on ECG being more pronounced in countries with higher levels of InQ, while the effect is weaker in countries with lower levels of InQ. The findings of this study have crucial policy implications, highlighting the intricate link among institutional quality, health outcomes, and economic growth. This study’s findings provide essential insights for policymakers to design focused strategies that improve InQ and health outcomes to achieve sustained ECG in SSA.