Issues Briefs Index 2000

Issues Briefs List 2000

These briefs are prepared by IMF staff for public information and as a contribution to debate on issues of topical interest.

December

Policies for Faster Growth and Poverty Reduction in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Role of the IMF -- An IMF Issues Brief After two decades of economic stagnation and little progress in poverty reduction, the seeds of an economic renaissance in sub-Saharan Africa, with faster growth and less poverty, have been sown in recent years. This Issues Brief, after reviewing recent economic developments, outlines the key policy issues that countries in the region will need to address and the contribution that the international community, including the IMF, will need to make to build on recent gains and establish a virtuous cycle of sustained high-quality growth.

December 01, 2000

November
Transition Economies: An IMF Perspective on Progress and Prospects -- An IMF Issues Brief The race to transform centrally planned economies into market economies has led, ten years later, to one group of countries approaching the finish line, others languishing at various points along the track, and a few barely off the starting blocks.	November 03, 2000

September
The Logic of Debt Relief for the Poorest Countries -- An IMF Issues Brief Many poor countries have had increasing difficulty making payments on their debts, mainly because they have not grown as rapidly as had been hoped.	September 23, 2000

June
Exchange Rate Regimes in an Increasingly Integrated World Economy -- An IMF Issues Brief This brief considers the choice of an appropriate exchange rate regime--floating, managed or fixed arrangements--for individual countries in light of important changes that have taken place in the world econmy in recent years.	June 26, 2000
Recovery from the Asian Crisis and the Role of the IMF -- An IMF Issues Brief This brief updates a paper entitled The IMF's Response to the Asian Crisis that was issued in January 1999.	June 23, 2000

April
The IMF and Environmental Issues -- An IMF Issues Brief Describes the IMF’s particular role concerning environmental issues and provides specific country examples, which illustrate the nature of Fund advice in this area.	April 13, 2000
Globalization: Threat or Opportunity? An IMF Issues Brief Offers an overview of some aspects of globalization and aims to identify ways in which countries can tap the gains of this process, while remaining realistic about its potential and its risks.	April 12, 2000
Debt Relief, Globalization, and IMF Reform: Some Questions and Answers -- An IMF Issues Brief	April 12, 2000
IMF Reform: Change and Continuity -- An IMF Issues Brief The international community has confronted enormous economic challenges, including the need to deal with turbulence in emerging markets, to assist countries making the transition from central planning to a market economy, and to promote growth and poverty reduction in the poorest countries. These challenges have led to a worldwide debate about reform of the international monetary and financial system, as well as reform of the IMF.	April 12, 2000