Country Reports
2022
April 27, 2022
Central African Republic: First Review Under the Staff-Monitored Program
Description: The fragile security environment has improved following the attempt by armed groups to seize power at the turn of the year 2021. The reopening of the Douala-Bangui corridor reinvigorated activity and curbed inflationary pressures. The third Covid-19 wave is receding, but vaccination has been slow. President Touadéra has launched the Republican dialogue peace initiative alongside the Luanda Road Map spearheaded by neighboring countries. The surrender of a key rebel leader to the International Criminal Court represents a key step in the peace process. Donors have delayed disbursing budget support pending greater transparency in the government’s security-related spending. This poses substantial fiscal and social risks given the heavy reliance on budget support. The sharp deterioration in terms of trade, reflecting food and fuel price shocks, compounded by geo-political spillovers, will exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and further erode policy space.
April 15, 2022
Kenya: Technical Assistance Report-Further Review of Rebased GDP Estimates
Description: A Technical Assistance (TA) mission was conducted in July 2021 to review the data sources and methods used to produce revised estimates of the Kenyan National Accounts (NA) for the period 2009–2019. The mission also provided guidance on producing a revision report to be published at the time of the release.
April 15, 2022
Republic of Madagascar: Technical Assistance Report-Government Finance Statistics
Description: At the request of the Ministry of the Economy and Finance (Ministère de l’Économie et des Finances (MEF)) and in consultation with the African Department (AFR) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the IMF Statistics Department (STA) carried out a remote mission on government finance statistics (GFS) from November 29–December 10, 2021. The purpose of the mission was to continue to support the Malagasy authorities in their work to adopt international standards of the Government Finance Statistics Manual 2014 (GFSM 2014) for their GFS. The mission would like to thank the Research Directorate (Direction des Études (DE)) of the Directorate General of the Treasury (Direction Générale du Trésor (DGT)) for its close collaboration and more specifically for the timely communication of the required documents, which was essential to the success of the mission given the remote working conditions.
April 15, 2022
Albania: Enhancing Tax Administration Capacity During Challenging Times
Description: The purpose of this mission was to assist the General Directorate of Taxes (GDT) in taking stock of reform efforts and provide advice on future efforts. In recent years, the GDT made solid progress in realizing its reform agenda. The mission took stock of the reform achievements and identifies areas which require further improvement.
April 12, 2022
St. Lucia: Technical Assistance Report-External Sector Statistics
Description: A remote technical assistance (TA) mission on external sector statistics (ESS) was conducted for the Central Statistical Office (CSO) of Saint Lucia during March 22–26, 2021. The mission was part of the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC) work program on External Sector Statistics (ESS).
April 12, 2022
Suriname: Technical Assistance Report-External Sector Statistics
Description: A technical assistance (TA) mission on external sector statistics (ESS) was conducted in Paramaribo, Suriname, during March 2‒13, 2020. The mission was part of the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC) work program on ESS and was carried out in response to a request from the Central Bank of Suriname (CBvS). The mission reviewed estimates and coverage of the balance of payments and international investment position (IIP), which have been prepared in the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6) format. In particular, the mission’s work mainly aimed at enhancing the coverage and the classification of (i) currency and deposits assets held abroad by the nonfinancial sector; (ii) insurance services, transport, travel account and trade credit and advances; (iii) offshore petroleum exploration companies; (iv) government external debt; and (iv) the use of business survey. Improvements in these key areas will facilitate a more robust assessment of external sector developments. Reliable ESS is essential for informed economic policy-making by the authorities and for IMF’s surveillance.
April 12, 2022
Dominica: Technical Assistance Report-External Sector Statistics
Description: A remote technical assistance (TA) mission on external sector statistics (ESS) was conducted to the Statistics Department of Dominica (SDD) during August 30 to September 10, 2021. The mission was carried out as part of the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC) work program on ESS. The balance of payments and international investment position (IIP) statistics for Dominica are compiled jointly by the SDD and the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB).1 In this context, three staff from the ECCB participated in the mission in their capacity of ESS compilers for Dominica. Fadhila Alfaraj of the IMF’s Statistics Department (STA) joined the mission.
April 12, 2022
People’s Republic of China—Macao Special Administrative Region: 2022 Article IV Consultation Discussions
Description: Macao SAR’s recovery is expected to continue in 2022, but it will take several years before the economy returns to its pre-crisis level. Although strong fiscal support and the financial strength of Macao SAR’s casino groups cushioned employment and consumption, the sharp contraction in activity exposed Macao SAR’s vulnerability to external forces affecting the inflow of tourists. Short-term risks to the outlook include a re-intensification of the COVID-19 pandemic and an increase in Macao SAR’s financial sector stress. The heavy impact of the pandemic on Macao SAR’s growth highlights the need to diversify the economy beyond the gaming industry. The high exposure to climate-related shocks poses long-term concerns.
April 12, 2022
People’s Republic of China—Macao Special Administrative Region: Selected Issues
Description: Selected Issues
April 12, 2022
Seychelles: Technical Assistance Report-External Sector Statistics
Description: A remote external sector statistics (ESS) technical assistance (TA) was provided to the Central Bank of Seychelles (CBS) during October 4–13, 2021. The main objectives of the mission were to (i) assist the authorities in improving the quality of ESS by focusing on actions undertaken by the CBS for collecting data from corporate service providers (CSPs) and their inclusion in the balance of payments and international investment position (IIP) statistics; (ii) assess the data reported by the CSPs and their fit into the ESS framework; (iii) prepare the basis for Seychelles’ participation in the IMF’s survey “Resident Special Purpose Entities: Cross Border Flows and Positions) (IMF’s SPEs Survey); and (iv) review and assess the adequacy of estimated travel services.