Does real exchange rate devaluation improve the current account balance of highly indebted low income countries?

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine whether real exchange rate devaluation improves the current account balance of four highly indebted low-income countries of East Africa. Design/methodology/approach The pooled mean group (PMG) approach is used for panel data from four countries over the period 1970-2016. The paper also applied bound testing and ARDL model for time-series data from individual sample countries. Findings The panel PMG/ARDL estimation result reveals that real exchange rate devaluation has no significant impact on the current account balance, both in the short and long run. However, the time-series analysis using the bound testing and restricted ARDL estimation suggests that real exchange rate devaluation improves the current account balance in the long run for only Ethiopia. The overall empirical results reveal that the current account balance would improve with the rising domestic income while it deteriorates with increasing foreign income and external indebtedness in the long run. Originality/value The paper is original.