Policy Papers
2011
September 16, 2011
Provisional Agenda for the Twenty-Fourth Meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)
Description:
Provisional Agenda
1. Adoption of Agenda—Opening Remarks by the Chair
2. The Managing Director’s Consolidated Multilateral Surveillance Report
- Presentation by the IMF Economic and Financial Counsellors The Managing Director’s Action Plan
- Presentation by the Managing Director
3. Approval of Press Communiqué
September 13, 2011
Update on the Financing of the Fund's Concessional Assistance and Debt Relief to Low-Income Member Countries
Description:
Lower-than-expected demand over the recent past has raised the lending capacity of the PRGT for the years 2012–14. Staff’s latest projections suggest PRGT demand in 2011 could be about SDR 1.4 billion, up from SDR 1.2 billion in 2010. Assuming the 2009 LIC financing package is completed, these projections would be consistent with lending capacity of about SDR 2.1 billion per year from 2012–14, or SDR 1.5 billion per year through 2015.
Most of the targeted loan resources under the 2009 package have now been secured, but additional pledges of about SDR 1 billion in loans are still needed. Fourteen members have pledged SDR 9.8 billion in new loan resources for the PRGT, compared to the target of SDR 10.8 billion. New borrowing agreements totaling SDR 9.5 billion have been signed with thirteen lenders. Eight of these agreements provide loan resources in SDRs, and seven creditors also participate in the voluntary encashment regime.
September 13, 2011
Progress Report on the Activities of the Independent Evaluation Office
Description: Since its last report to the IMFC in April 2011, the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) completed the evaluation of Research at the IMF: Relevance and Utilization. The IEO continues its work on the evaluations of “International Reserves: IMF Advice and Country Perspectives” and of “The Role of the IMF as Trusted Advisor,” announced last spring. Draft issues papers on these two evaluations, as well as on a new study, “Learning from Experience at the IMF: An IEO Assessment of Self-Evaluation Systems,” were circulated to the Executive Board and posted on the IEO website for public comment.
August 31, 2011
2011 Triennial Surveillance Review - Report of the External Advisory Group
Description:
This report was prepared by the External Advisory Group (EAG) for the 2011 Triennial Surveillance Review (TSR). The Group comprised the following members: Shankar Acharya, Marc Antoine Autheman, Kemal Dervis, Martin Hellwig, Takatoshi Ito, David Li, Pedro Malan, Stephen Pickford, Chukwuma Charles Soludo, Umayya Toukan, and Edwin Truman.
The EAG was set up to provide an independent check on staff’s analysis and recommendations which are set out in the 2011 Triennial Surveillance Review—Overview Paper. The EAG contributed in written form and met twice during the course of the Triennial Surveillance Review (TSR)—on April 18 and July 29, 2011—to discuss the direction, emerging findings, and recommendations of the review.
Notes: The views expressed in this report are those of the External Advisory Group and do not necessarily reflect those of the IMF or IMF policy.
August 29, 2011
2011 Triennial Surveillance Review - Overview Paper
Description: This paper assesses progress in strengthening Fund surveillance and identifies needed improvements. It differs from past reviews insofar as it: (A) encompasses not only bilateral but also multilateral surveillance; and (B) steps-up external inputs in the form of studies by outside observers, commentaries, and assessment of recommendations by an external advisory group.
August 26, 2011
2011 Triennial Surveillance Review - Health Check and Statistical Information
Description: This paper (a) provides a snapshot of the overall value added of Fund‘s surveillance perceived by stakeholders; (b) details where the Fund stands in terms of four operational priorities set out in the 2008 TSR; (c) examines key issues identified in the recent IEO paper on the IMF performance in the run up to the global crisis; and (d) discusses stakeholders' perception on the communication aspects of surveillance.
August 26, 2011
2011 Triennial Surveillance Review - Review of the 2007 Surveillance Decision and the Broader Legal Framework for Surveillance
Description: This paper reviews the 2007 Surveillance Decision and the broader legal framework for surveillance. While the 2007 Surveillance Decision on Bilateral Surveillance over Members’ Policies (thereafter, the 2007 Decision) requires the Fund to review the decision itself, this paper takes a broader view. It recognizes that the 2007 Decision cannot be assessed in isolation from the legal framework it derives from, i.e., the Articles of Agreement, and that a debate on the adequacy of this broader framework is also necessary. The paper therefore discusses the strengths and limitations of the current system as set out in both the Articles of Agreement (primarily, Article IV) and the 2007 Decision and explores options going forward.
August 26, 2011
2011 Triennial Surveillance Review - Staff Background Studies
Description: This paper evaluates the IMF’s exchange rate analysis since the 2008 TSR. It focuses on the evolution of methods, the quality of the IMF‘s multilateral and bilateral exchange rate analysis, the evenhandedness and transparency of this analysis, and the need to improve the coverage and integration of external stability assessments.
August 19, 2011
Review of the Fund's Strategy on Overdue Financial Obligations
Description: This paper reviews progress under the Fund’s strengthened cooperative strategy on overdue financial obligations. The level and structure of arrears to the Fund remained broadly unchanged since the last review. Total arrears to the Fund amounted to SDR 1,303.9 million at end-June 2011, a decline of about SDR 5.5 million since the last review. While payments to the Fund by Sudan and Zimbabwe were in excess of new obligations falling due since the last review, Somalia’s arrears increased further.
August 17, 2011
Quota Formula Review - Data Update and Issues
Description:
At the conclusion of the 14th General Review of Quotas (14th Review), the Board of Governors requested that a comprehensive review of the quota formula be completed by the Executive Board by January 2013. The timetable for completing the 15th General Review was also brought forward by two years to January 2014. This paper is intended to serve as background for an initial informal exchange of views on issues relating to the formula review. It begins with a brief stock-take, before presenting the results of updating the quota database through 2009. The remainder of the paper discusses potential issues that could be considered as part of the review.