Press Release No. 13/54

Press Release: IMF Management and Staff Welcome Independent Evaluation Office’s Report on the Role of IMF as Trusted Advisor

February 20, 2013

The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) management and staff welcomed the report released today by the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) on the Role of the IMF as a Trusted Advisor, which focuses on the quality and traction of the IMF’s advice to its members.

“I am encouraged by the survey findings that the large majority of authorities held positive views of the Fund and its work and that the Fund’s image has continued to improve,” Managing Director Christine Lagarde said in a statement. She acknowledged however that more is needed to ensure that all Fund members see the institution as an “honest, even-handed and intellectually rigorous partner.” She noted that “reversing the effects of legacy and stigma…is a challenge with no quick or easy solutions.”

The IEO report includes a myriad of recommendations to improve the work of the IMF and its interactions with the membership. In a separate report, IMF staff agreed with a number of suggestions by the IEO, notably enhancing the value of Article IV consultations by drawing on relevant cross-country experiences, and improving the medium-term focus of the relationship between the Fund and member countries by lengthening country assignments and enhancing the dialogue with country authorities. IMF staff had reservations regarding some other recommendations—such as providing country authorities with draft policy recommendations ahead of staff missions—which they believed would not necessarily solve the difficulties identified and could raise potential policy implementation problems.

Ms. Lagarde concluded that the IEO paper contained helpful guidelines and vowed to work with staff to implement those endorsed by the Executive Board. “I believe we should focus on the proposals to enhance our engagement through deeper dialogue before, during, and after missions, by working harder to ensure continuity of engagement by Fund teams, and by ensuring that staff apply our policies with the utmost transparency and evenhandedness,” she said.