Policy Papers

July 12, 2006

Technical Assistance Evaluation Program - - Findings of Evaluations and Updated Program

Description: This paper is the third to be issued under the Fund's Technical Assistance Evaluation Program, which was launched in FY 2003. It reports on the findings of five completed evaluations, and updates the program of evaluations for FY 2007–2009. The completed evaluations featured in this paper are: (i) an evaluation of technical assistance provided by the Legal Department to Indonesia related to the strengthening of the commercial courts and the implementation of the bankruptcy law; and (ii) evaluations of technical assistance delivered by the Monetary and Financial Systems Department to Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo to strengthen capacity in the financial sector.

July 5, 2006

Making the Misreporting Policies Less Onerous in De Minimis Cases

Description: The Managing Director's Medium-Term Strategy referred to complex misreporting procedures for even trivial forms of misreporting and called for streamlining. This paper presents a proposal to reduce the burden of the Fund’s misreporting policies in cases involving de minimis deviations from program conditions. The proposal is to consider deviations from a performance criterion or other condition to be de minimis where they are so small as to be trivial with no impact on the assessment of program performance.

June 30, 2006

Bosnia and Herzegovina - Assessment of MFD's Technical Assistance Program

Description: This report summarizes the findings of an evaluation of the technical assistance delivered by MFD to the CBBH. The assessment was conducted during a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina during the period March 15–17, 2006. It covers the period 1997–2005, although MFD TA started earlier: two brief MFD staff visits took place in 1996 to assist the authorities in preparing legislation to establish a currency board and create a market-based central bank.

Notes: The views expressed in this evaluation are of an independent consultant and do not necessarily reflect the views of the IMF.

June 30, 2006

Kosovo - Assessment of MFD's Technical Assistance Program

Description: MFD technical assistance to Kosovo has been provided under special circumstances, since it is not a member of the IMF or of the World Bank. As a region within the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia severely affected by the war with Serbia, Kosovo has been administered by the UNMIK on the basis of UN Security Council Decision 1244 of June 10, 1999. After the end of the war, the UNMIK requested technical assistance from the IMF. The IMF's Executive Board approved this request, and MFD began providing TA in late 1999.

Notes: The views expressed in this evaluation are of an independent consultant and do not necessarily reflect the views of the IMF.

June 29, 2006

Standards and Codes - Implementing the Fund's Medium-Term Strategy and the Recommendations of the 2005 Review of the Initiative

Description: This paper informs Executive Directors of the operational changes that are being made to the Fund’s work on Standards and Codes, to implement the Fund’s Medium-Term Strategy (MTS) and the recommendations of the 2005 IMF-World Bank review of the Standards and Codes Initiative. The changes aim at improving (i) the country coverage and prioritization of Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSCs) to make more efficient use of resources, (ii) the integration of ROSCs with Fund surveillance and technical assistance, for a better use of ROSC findings and greater support of reform efforts, and (iii) the clarity and timeliness of ROSCs. The paper focuses on the actions that are being taken and does not elaborate on the rationales for the corresponding recommendations, which were discussed by Directors in the context of the MTS and 2005 Review. The actions being taken are summarized in Table 1. Many of the actions do not apply to ROSCs carried out under the aegis of the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP), which are typically subject to a separate set of procedures under the FSAP, or to financial sector ROSCs of Offshore Financial Centers, which are conducted separately. According to the proposals in the MTS, the next review of the Standards and Codes Initiative would take place in 2010.

June 28, 2006

Article IV of the Fund's Articles of Agreement - An Overview of the Legal Framework

Description: This paper is designed to assist the Executive Board in its consideration of the steps that could be taken to provide members with more specific guidance as to their obligations under Article IV.

Notes: Fund documents that are cited in this paper are available in some cases on the IMF external website and, in all cases, under the Fund's Archives Policy.

June 23, 2006

Quotas and Voice - Further Thoughts on Approaches to Reform

Description: There is now widespread recognition that addressing quota and voice imbalances across the membership is essential for preserving the effectiveness of the Fund and its credibility as a cooperative institution. As noted in the Managing Director’s Report on Implementing the Medium-Term Strategy,2 members’ quotas have become increasingly out of line with countries’ economic weight in the global economy. In addition, the declining role of basic votes since the Fund was established has weakened the voice of smaller developing countries.

June 19, 2006

Country Insurance - The Role of Domestic Policies

Description: Member countries are routinely faced with a range of shocks that can contribute to higher volatility in aggregate output and, in extreme cases, to economic crises. The presence of such risks underlies a potential demand for mechanisms to soften the blow from adverse economic shocks -- “country insurance” for short. Protective measures that countries can take themselves (“self-insurance”) include sound economic policies, robust financial structures, and adequate reserve coverage. Beyond self insurance, countries have also established regional arrangements that pool risks, while at the multilateral level the IMF has a central role in making its resources temporarily available to attenuate the costs of economic adjustment when shocks create balance of payments difficulties for a member. This paper analyzes a number of mechanisms through which countries can self-insure, leaving the role of collective regional and multilateral arrangements to subsequent papers.

Notes: This is a discussion paper prepared by IMF staff. It is not a policy paper of the International Monetary Fund, and any positions taken should not be attributed to the Executive Board or management of the IMF. This paper should not be reported as representing the views of the IMF.

May 26, 2006

Article VIII Acceptance by IMF Members - Recent Trends and Implications for the Fund

Description: This paper reports on the work undertaken in this area since the 1992 review and seeks to encourage further progress in current account liberalization among the membership. Section II provides an overview of the legal framework; Section III studies recent trends in members’ acceptance of Article VIII obligations, and analyzes the factors underlying these trends; Section IV outlines the possible economic (and financial) benefits of current account liberalization for Fund members; finally, Section V lays out the implications for surveillance, the enforcement of compliance with Article VIII obligations and technical assistance.

April 20, 2006

Report on Access to Fund Resources During 2005

Description: In the context of a relatively benign international environment with limited balance of payments needs, recourse to Fund resources has declined across several dimensions: fewer GRA arrangements; lower outstanding Fund resources; and a smaller average access under new PRGF arrangements.