Recent Developments in
IMF-CSO Relations
The 2005 Spring
Meetings of the IMF
and World Bank
provided an important
opportunity to assess
progress in the effort
to reduce global
poverty, and offered
an overview of the
international efforts
to define the next
stage of the
poverty-reduction
strategy. The meetings
followed the release
of several key reports
by the United Nations,
the British
government, and the
Bank and Fund
themselves on the
Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) and
related aid programs,
especially in Africa.
At the meetings,
various officials
offered perspectives
on the discussions
among donor countries
on the future of
overseas development
assistance, including
debt relief (see, for
example, the press
conferences of IMF
Managing Director
Rodrigo de Rato on
April 14, and that
of U.K. Chancellor of
the Exchequer Gordon
Brown and the Managing
Director on
April 16). Now,
all eyes will be on a
series of meetings
that will take place
before the 2005 IMF-World
Bank Annual Meetings:
the G-8 summit in
Gleaneagles, Scotland
next June; the
high-level dialogue at
the UN under the
auspices of the
Financing for
Development program
also in June; and the
Millennium Summit in
September.
The 2005 Spring
Meetings coincided
with several events
involving the IMF,
World Bank and Civil
Society Organizations
(CSOs). Apart from the
biennial Civil Society
dialogues, IMF and
World Bank staff
participated in a
meeting with labor
union leaders on
Poverty Reduction
Strategy Papers
(PRSPs) and
participated in a
multistakeholder
dialogue with CSOs
feeding into the 2005
PRSP review.
The Spring Meetings
Civil Society
dialogues covered
a wide range of
topics, including the
IMF's role in
low-income countries;
resource revenue
transparency in
natural resource-rich
countries; the IMF's
conditionality review;
and the macroeconomics
of HIV/AIDS. CSOs
attending these
dialogues were also
busy lobbying the G-7
countries for movement
on the campaign for
additional debt
relief. Even though no
final decision was
taken in that regard,
the communiqués of the
G-7, the International
Monetary and Financial
Committee (IMFC) and
the Development
Committee reiterated
the need for action
regarding the MDGs.
The
feature article
reports on the IMFC
meeting.
The technical
meeting with labor
unions was part of the
regular dialogue
between the
International
Financial Institutions
(IFIs) and the labor
movement, with
high-level meetings
held every two years
and technical meetings
focusing on specific
issues held in the
intervening years. The
last high-level
meeting took place in
October 2004. Both
Fund and Bank staff
and labor unions
welcomed the session,
as an
article on the
meeting illustrates.
The largest event
was the
multistakeholder
dialogue on the
Poverty Reduction
Strategy (PRS)
process, which
involved around 200
representatives from
CSOs, governments,
parliaments, donor
agencies and the Bank
and Fund. It was part
of a World Bank-Civil
Society Global Policy
Forum that also
discussed World
Bank-CSO relations.
The
conference will
feed into the 2005
PRSP Review, an
in-depth assessment of
progress, challenges,
and good practices
related to several key
issues of the PRS five
years after the launch
of the strategy.
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Feature Article:
Report from
the International
Monetary and Financial
Committee
The International
Monetary and Financial
Committee (IMFC),
which brings together
24 of the Fund's
governors and other
officials representing
the Fund's 184 member
countries for
high-level discussions
of global economic
policy issues and IMF
policies and
operations, met
April 16 in
Washington, D.C. The
meeting addressed the
outlook for the global
economy, IMF support
for low-income
members' efforts to
reduce poverty, and
the Fund's strategic
direction.
The IMFC welcomed
the continuing global
expansion, which is
expected to continue
through 2005 and
beyond. However, the
committee also noted
that widening
imbalances across
regions and the
continued rise in oil
prices and oil market
volatility have
increased the risks
facing the world
economy. It concluded
that the IMF's own
policy consultations
with its members
should focus on
promoting policies for
reducing global
imbalances over time;
addressing the impact
of higher oil prices,
in particular on the
most vulnerable
countries; managing
the policy response to
potential inflationary
pressures; and
ensuring the
sustainability of
medium-term fiscal
frameworks.
The Committee
particularly welcomed
the recent strong
growth in sub-Saharan
Africa, but noted with
concern that most of
the members in that
region are at risk of
falling well short of
the Millennium
Development Goals
(MDGs). With improved
macroeconomic
stability in most
countries, the IMFC
observed that the key
challenge for these
countries remains to
press ahead with
reforms to strengthen
the investment
environment and foster
private sector-led
growth. The global
community, in turn,
needs to support these
reform efforts through
meeting commitments to
increased and better
coordinated financial
and technical
assistance; further
debt relief; policies
to improve remittance
flows; and improved
market access for
developing countries.
The Committee
underscored the
conclusion of this
year's IMF-World Bank
Global Monitoring
Report that bold
actions are urgently
needed by the
developing countries
and their partners to
realize the MDGs. It
said that the
U.N. Summit in
September 2005 will
mark an important
milestone to review
progress in this area
and lay out actions
going forward. The
IMFC said that the IMF
has a critical role in
supporting-through
policy advice,
capacity building, and
financial assistance,
including debt
relief-low-income
countries' efforts to
achieve macroeconomic
stability, debt
sustainability, and
strong, sustainable
high growth needed to
make progress toward
the MDGs.
The IMFC noted that
work is underway to
refine the operational
aspects of the PRS
approach, improve the
design of programs
under the Poverty
Reduction and Growth
Facility (PRGF), and
embrace alignment
between PRGF-supported
programs and PRSs.
This will be
underpinned by more
extensive analyses of
the sources of, and
obstacles to, growth,
and of the linkages
between growth and
poverty reduction. The
Committee looked
forward to further
work to ensure
adequate financing of
the PRGF to meet
future demands, and
other IMF instruments
to assist low-income
countries (LICs),
including to help
members deal with
shocks. It also looked
forward to further
work on a policy
monitoring arrangement
to enhance the IMF's
signaling role for
countries that do not
need or want IMF
financing.
While ministers
agreed that more aid
would be needed to
help
countries-particularly
in Africa-reach the
MDGs, there was no
consensus on how to
mobilize those
additional financial
resources. Various
proposals were
discussed, but no
decisions were taken.
Decisions are expected
later this year as
other international
meetings proceed,
including the G-8
summit at Gleneagles
in Scotland, the UN
Summit in New York,
and the IMF/World Bank
Annual Meetings in
Washington D.C. in
September.
On debt, the IMFC
noted the recent
progress in providing
debt relief under the
HIPC initiative, and
expressed its support
for the joint
IMF-World Bank
framework to help LICs
achieve and maintain
debt sustainability.
It welcomed the IMF's
work and the
preliminary discussion
of key issues
regarding proposals
for further
multilateral debt
relief and its
financing options, and
called for further
discussion with
shareholders and
examination of these
issues, including the
possible use of the
IMF's resources.
On the strategic
direction of the Fund,
the committee welcomed
discussions underway
within the institution
on a medium-term
strategy and confirmed
that the central
elements of the IMF's
mandate under its
Articles of Agreement
remain as important as
ever. The Committee
called for further
work to strengthen IMF
consultations with
member
countries-called
surveillance-and its
work on financial
sector issues and
international capital
markets; further
reflection on the
Fund's lending
facilities; adaptation
of Fund policies to
the needs of
low-income countries;
and improvement of
internal management
standards. In
addition, the IMFC
said that adequate
"voice and
participation by all
members must be
assured, and
distribution of quotas
should reflect
developments in the
world economy."
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The 2005 Spring
Meetings:
Civil society
dialogues at the
Spring Meetings
The civil society
dialogues at the 2005
IMF/World Bank Spring
Meetings covered a
range of topics of
interest to CSOs and
the Bretton Woods
Institutions (BWIs),
including the IMF's
role in LICs, the
IMF's conditionality
review, and the
macroeconomics of
HIV/AIDS. Many of the
meetings were
organized by the IMF
and World Bank, but
several events were
sponsored by CSOs and
other organizations.
The regular dialogues
also coincided with a
labor union technical
meeting on the PRSP
process (see
article) as well
as the World Bank
Civil Society Global
Policy Forum (see
article). The full
list of dialogues is
available at
http://www.worldbank.org/civilsociety.
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CSOs and
Nigerian minister
welcome IMF work on
resource revenue
transparency
During a panel
discussion on
transparency in
extractive industries,
Nigerian Finance
Minister Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala and
representatives from
Global Witness and
Human Rights Watch
discussed with IMF and
World Bank staff the
recently published
draft
Guide on Resource
Revenue Transparency.
The April 15 panel
discussion was
moderated by Peter
Heller, Deputy
Director of the IMF's
Fiscal Affairs
Department (FAD).
The IMF had
posted the
Draft Guide for
public comment in
December 2004, and
comments submitted
were taken into
account during the
preparation of the
final version of the
Guide (see
Civil Society
Newsletter
February 2005). In
the Guide IMF
staff said
institutional
strengthening to
improve transparency
in resource-rich
countries should
provide an ample
payoff for a
relatively modest
investment.
Transparency of
current revenue
transactions is an
area in which many low
and middle-income
countries can make
immediate, visible
progress, if necessary
with technical
support, it said.
Diarmid O'Sullivan,
campaigner with Global
Witness's oil
campaign, said the NGO
has some reservations
but likes the Guide,
believing it is the
clearest and most
comprehensive
articulation of the
information that needs
to be in the public
domain, and of needed
oversight measures.
Global Witness also
says it approves of
the way the Guide
does not limit the
freedom of governments
to choose their own
policies, and
the Guide's
understanding that
both oil and mining
companies that pay
revenues and
governments that
receive the revenues
have a responsibility
to be transparent.
Arvind Ganesan,
business and human
rights director at
Human Rights Watch,
said the IMF has taken
a "really progressive
stance on transparency
and ... a very
positive line with
governments ... to
push their practices
forward." He said the
guide is a good
starting
point-provided it
actually is
implemented. The key
is that there be a
minimum commitment to
transparency across
the board, regardless
of country, Ganesan
said.
Finance Minister
Okonjo-Iweala said
that implementing
resource revenue
transparency is at the
center of an
anticorruption drive
in Nigeria. Her
country's government
has tried, since its
election in 1999, to
be clearer than in the
past about the role
and responsibility of
government in the
resource sector.
Okonjo-Iweala said the
Nigerian government's
transparency drive is
not an isolated
effort, but part of an
overall reform program
that includes improved
public expenditure
management;
privatization; public
sector reform; and
banking reforms. She
said Nigeria is trying
hard to overcome a
reputation of
corruption and
mismanagement,
including improper use
of its natural
resources.
In the Nigerian
government's effort to
put in place reforms
that can turn the
economy around and
enable the private
sector to create jobs,
fighting corruption
and improving
transparency are key
goals, Okonjo-Iweala
added. She said the
Guide's reference
to institutional
strengthening and
improved transparency
providing significant
benefits to government
and taxpayers
precisely captures
Nigeria's recent
experience.
Okonjo-Iweala also
noted that oil is the
center of the Nigerian
economy, providing
over 75 percent of
government revenues
and comprising
90 percent of exports.
Since corrupt behavior
has affected the oil
sector in the past,
the government must
improve the
transparency of its
revenues.
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Other CSO policy
dialogues
- The Center for
Global Development
(CGD) sponsored a
panel discussion on
April 18 to discuss
the macroeconomic
and fiscal
challenges facing
countries receiving
significant
resources to fight
HIV/AIDS.
Representing the IMF
were Peter Heller,
Deputy Director,
Fiscal Affairs
Department (FAD),
and David Andrews,
Assistant Director,
African Department.
Other panelists were
Holly Burkhalter,
U.S. Policy Director
at Physicians for
Human Rights; Donald
Kaberuka, Minister
of Finance of
Rwanda; Maureen
Lewis, Senior Fellow
at CGD; and Ezra
Suruma, Minister of
Finance of Uganda.
The event was
moderated by CGD's
President, Nancy
Birdsall. A webcast
and transcript of
the event can be
found at
http://www.cgdev.org.
Please also see the
IMF Survey story
on the event.
- A discussion of
the recently
published "The
Macroeconomics of
HIV/AIDS" was
held April 19 at the
IMF. Markus Haacker,
an economist in the
IMF African
Department and
editor of the book,
and Shanta
Devarajan, Chief
Economist in the
South Asia Region of
the World Bank, led
the discussion and
presented their
findings to CSOs.
Also see an article
on the book in the
Civil Society
Newsletter
February 2005.
- Mark Plant,
Senior Advisor in
the IMF's Policy
Development and
Review Department
(PDR) and other
staffers from PDR
and FAD on April 20
gave an update on
the IMF's role in
low-income countries
and how it fits into
the current
political climate
surrounding the MDGs
and the new debt
relief proposals by
the G-7. He said
that while these
proposals now have
to be discussed by
donor governments
before any action
can be taken, CSOs
should not forget
that for a small
number of countries,
the HIPC initiative
is not fully
financed yet.
- Also on
April 20, Tessa van
der Willigen and
Atish R. Ghosh,
Advisor and Division
Chief, respectively,
in PDR gave an
update on
the 2004-05 review
of IMF
conditionality
policy, which
consists of three
components:
design of
Fund-supported
programs,
review of the
application of
the 2002
conditionality
guidelines, and
how these complement
the review of
Bank-Fund
collaboration. CSOs
were mostly
interested in how
the 2002
conditionality
guidelines have
affected IMF
conditionality in
practice. Speakers
said that although
it is still too
early for an
evaluation of the
implementation of
the guidelines, many
changes are already
apparent.
- Thomas
Dalsgaard, FAD
Senior Economist, on
April 14
participated in the
panel discussion
"The Budget Woes of
Developing
Countries: Can they
Afford More Trade
Liberalization?",
organized by the
Heinrich Böll
Foundation (Böll)
and the Center of
Concern. Other panel
participants
included Böll's
Liane Schalatek;
Rosario Guzman,
President of the
IBON Foundation in
the Philippines;
Sony Kapoor of the
International Tax
Justice Network and
Tobin Tax Network;
and Antoine Heuty of
the United Nations
Development
Programme.
- A group of
legislators and CSOs
on April 15
presented two
petitions (or two
versions of a
petition) to the
Fund and Bank
calling on IMF and
World Bank Executive
Directors to ensure
that
parliamentarians are
fully involved in
economic decisions
affecting their
countries. Eight
lawmakers, from
Argentina, Brazil,
Ghana, Indonesia,
Italy, Kenya,
Malawi, and the
U.K., presented the
petition, an
initiative by a
group of CSOs. It
had been signed by
about 1,000
parliamentarians (of
whom about half are
from Europe). IMF
and World Bank staff
had been aware of
one version of
the petition, while
a
different-and more
critical-one was
also presented at
the meeting. Each
had different sets
of signatures. The
legislators,
representing the
International
Parliamentarians'
Petition for
Democratic Oversight
of IMF and World
Bank Policies, met
with IMF and World
Bank staff. The
petition was
accepted by Thomas
Dawson, Director of
the IMF's External
Relations
Department, and Ian
Goldin, the World
Bank's
Vice-President for
External Affairs.
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Civil Society-IMF
Dialogue:
IMF and World
Bank host technical
meeting with labor
union leaders on
Poverty Reduction
Strategy Papers
(PRSPs)
A joint IMF-World
Bank technical meeting
with labor union
leaders on the subject
of trade union
involvement in the
preparation of PRSPs
was held in
Washington, D.C., on
April 19, 2005. The
meeting was organized
to coincide with the
IMF/World Bank
Civil Society
Dialogues that
traditionally take
place around the
Spring Meetings of
the two institutions,
and with a World Bank
Civil Society Global
Policy Forum that
sought the views of
civil society
organizations on the
ongoing IMF/World Bank
review of the PRSP
approach.
The meeting was
part of the regular
dialogue between the
IFIs and labor unions;
high-level meetings
are held every two
years and technical
meetings focusing on
specific issues are
held in the
intervening years. The
last high-level
meeting took place in
October 2004 (see
story in the
November 2004 issue of
the CSO newsletter).
A summary of that
discussion can be
found at:
http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/pr/2004/pr04212.htm.
In the first
session of the
day-long meeting with
labor unions, IMF and
World Bank
representatives
reviewed the outcome
of the Spring
Meetings, particularly
with regard to
low-income country
issues (see
feature article).
The second session
focused on the PRSP
review. Fund and Bank
staff reviewed the
experience with the
PRS process over the
first five years of
implementation, and
outlined some of its
achievements and
weaknesses. They noted
that the approach had
helped to strengthen
countries' focus on
poverty reduction
efforts, but that it
needed to provide a
better framework for
creating growth and
making progress on the
MDGs. Some preliminary
findings of the review
indicated that this
required, among other
things, a stronger
medium-term
orientation, better
prioritization,
broader and deeper
participation of
stakeholders, and
improved donor
coordination
mechanisms.
Trade union
representatives
focused their
presentations on how
to achieve more
meaningful
participation,
particularly of labor.
They said studies and
examples from
individual country
cases indicated that
trade union
consultation and
participation in the
elaboration of PRSPs
had been uneven; the
representatives said
that it was rare at
the implementation,
monitoring, and
evaluation stages.
This was largely due
to deficient
participation
structures and
processes in many
countries, but
sometimes also to a
lack of technical
capacity on the part
of unions that
detracted from their
ability to contribute.
The trade union
representatives
suggested several
actions to enhance the
quality of the
participatory process
and trade unions'
capacity to help
improve the reflection
of trade union
concerns in final
PRSPs.
In the third
session, a
representative from
the International
Labor Organization's
Bureau for Worker's
Activities
(ILO-ACTRAV) presented
a study of trade union
involvement in PRSPs,
based on pilot country
cases. Among ACTRAV's
recommendations was to
institute formal
mechanisms for
participation, on a
tripartite model
involving workers,
employers, and
government, and place
the goals of "decent
work"-including
employment, social
protection, rights,
and social dialogue-at
the heart of PRSP
discussions and
strategies.
Speakers at the
concluding session
broadly welcomed the
fact that the PRSP
approach had increased
attention to the issue
of poverty reduction,
and had led to greater
involvement of
stakeholders in
national discourses on
the best way to
achieve that goal.
They generally agreed,
however, that the
approach needed to be
refined in various
ways, including to
improve the quality of
participation by civil
society, and better
reflect "decent work"
objectives. IMF and WB
staff welcomed the
dialogue with the
trade unions, and
noted that their views
would be considered
and reflected in the
final report on the
PRSP review, which
will be ready by the
Fall.
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IMF and World
Bank staff review PRS
process in
multistakeholder
dialogue
Some 200
representatives from
civil society,
governments,
parliaments, donor
agencies and the Bank
and Fund came together
in Washington in late
April to assess the
Poverty Reduction
Strategy (PRS)
process. The
conference was part of
the
2005 Review, an
in-depth assessment of
progress, challenges,
and good practice
related to several key
issues of the PRS five
years after their
launch. Civil society
organizations (CSOs)
from over 50 countries
attended, representing
labor unions, NGOs,
faith-based groups,
foundations, and
community-based
organizations.
After opening
remarks by Mark Plant,
Senior Advisor in the
IMF Policy Development
and Review Department
(PDR), and Luca
Barbone, Director of
the Poverty Reduction
Group at the World
Bank, and a
presentation by Bank
and Fund staffs on the
review and the key
challenges faced in
the 70 countries
implementing PRS,
participants attended
eight separate
roundtables to
concentrate on key
questions such as the
availability of
poverty data,
relations with a
country's Medium-Term
Expenditure Framework
(MTEF-the budgetary
translation of the
PRS' medium-term
objectives and the
framework for the
formulation of annual
budgets), donor
harmonization, and CSO
participation in the
PRS process.
Each roundtable
included country-based
expertise from
government officials,
CSO representatives,
parliamentarians, and
PRS staff from donor
agencies. From the
IMF, Elliott Harris,
Patricia Alonso-Gamo,
Thomas Dorsey and
Louis Dicks-Mireaux
from PDR, as well as
Robert Gillingham from
the Fiscal Affairs
Department and
Benedict Clements from
the Western Hemisphere
Department,
participated in the
roundtables.
The recommendations
made by the working
groups during the day,
which will feed
directly into the
Review, included:
- Greater policy
coherence among
donors and
programmatic
accountability by
governments in order
to improve the
poverty impacts of
the PRSPs;
- Deepened quality
of civil society
participation;
currently there is a
widespread sense
that CSO input is
not reflected in the
final versions of
PRSPs;
- Greater
attention to
monitoring and
evaluation,
including
consideration of a
wider set of policy
and analytical
alternatives.
The notes from the
sessions are posted at
http://www.worldbank.org/prspreview.
IMF staff also
participated in
discussions the
following afternoon on
the World Bank
conditionality review
(Juan Zalduendo, PDR)
and on debt, trade and
the MDGs (Andy Berg,
PDR).
The PRS Day was
followed by a day of
discussion of
Bank-Civil Society
relations. More
information can be
found at:
http://www.worldbank.org/civilsociety/.
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New Director
of Independent
Evaluation Office
Thomas Bernes was
appointed Director of
the IMF's Independent
Evaluation Office
(IEO), succeeding
Montek Singh
Ahluwalia. Bernes is
the Executive
Secretary of the
IMF-World Bank
Development Committee
and Deputy Corporate
Secretary of the World
Bank. A Canadian
national, he
previously served as
IMF Executive Director
for Canada, Ireland,
and the Caribbean
constituency.
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Tracking
Grenada's Recovery:
Six Months After
Hurricane Ivan
Grenada, a small
island nation in the
Caribbean, was
devastated on
September 7, 2004, by
Hurricane Ivan.
Ninety percent of
houses on the island
were damaged or
destroyed. The overall
damage was estimated
at twice the country's
annual income. This
far exceeds the damage
of 2 percent of annual
income that natural
disasters have, on
average, inflicted on
countries over the
last three decades.
The utter devastation
of the country brought
forth tremendous
support from the
international
community,
particularly civil
society groups.
On
February 25, 2005, the
IMF and the World Bank
joined the National
Coalition on Caribbean
Affairs (www.ncoca.org)
to discuss Grenada's
recovery some six
months after Ivan
struck and the lessons
learnt for disaster
relief efforts in
general. Prakash
Loungani, the IMF's
mission chief to
Grenada, said that the
economic situation
remained very
difficult. About
8 percent of the labor
force had lost their
jobs, mainly from
tourism and
agriculture, as a
result of the effect
of the hurricane,
bringing the country's
unemployment rate to
over 20 percent. While
men were getting
absorbed in
reconstruction and
fishing, women were
finding it tougher to
get new jobs. Donor
agencies and civil
society groups were
trying to address the
providing training for
women in construction
and home repair. There
was also a severe need
for "helping people
come to grips" with
the trauma of the
hurricane through
counseling,
"particularly as the
next hurricane season
approaches."
Caroline Anstey,
the World Bank's
country director for
the Caribbean, added
that in Grenada, as
elsewhere in the
Eastern Caribbean
region, the country's
huge public debt adds
to the precariousness
of the economic
situation. "This is
essentially going to
be a problem for all
the people of the
region because it is
their debt. It will be
passed down to their
children, and their
children's children. I
think that there is a
need for a real
dialogue on the debt
issue in the
Caribbean," Anstey
said.
On the lessons
learned from Grenada,
Anstey said the
success of relief and
rehabilitation efforts
there shows "the need
to involve civil and
community groups ...
reconstruction can be
coordinated top down,
but it really needs to
take place bottom up
to energize the
community." She
mentioned, as an
example, the work of
faith-based NGOs in
helping with the
reconstruction of
churches.
Grenada's
ambassador to the
United States, Denis
G. Antoine, said his
country still needed
help to achieve its
goal to "Build Back
Better." He asked CSOs
and others to keep
"Grenada's name in the
news and in the
international
community" so that
this help would be
forthcoming. Without
such public attention,
"the Grenadas of the
world would remain
marginalized based on
their lack of economic
might."
A full transcript
of the event is
available at
http://www.imf.org/external/np/tr/2005/tr052505.htm
Back
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The IMF's
Civic Program Advisory
Committee awards
annual grants to
charities in
developing countries
In May 2005, 41
international
charities received
awards from the IMF's
Civic Program Advisory
Committee (CPAC),
which is made up of 12
representatives drawn
from staff, spouses
and partners,
retirees, and
volunteers from
INVOLVE (a
grassroots volunteer
group started by IMF
staff). CPAC supports
programs that assist
persons facing
low-income, socially
dependent, and other
detrimental and
dysfunctional
situations. The
selected organizations
are from a variety of
countries, including
China, Guatemala,
Mali, Mongolia, Nepal,
the Philippines,
Senegal, Togo,
Ukraine, the West Bank
and Gaza Territories,
and Zambia. The other
half of the 82 total
grantees are
organizations from the
Washington, D.C. area
that are providing
social services in the
IMF's host city. (See
guidelines and past
recipients at
www.imf.org/external/np/cpac/cpindex.htm.)
Since its founding
in 1994, CPAC has
given money to nearly
134 charities
globally. It is
managed by the Civic &
Community Relations
Office of the IMF's
External Relations
Department. CPAC's
activities also
include employee
contributions through
the "Helping Hands"
Campaign and
fundraising for
humanitarian relief
efforts. Fund
management personally
presents donations to
charitable
organizations when
visiting member
countries. (See the "letter
from the field" on
the Managing
Director's visit to
India). Donations have
placed an emphasis on
HIV/AIDS awareness
programs, orphanages,
rural health clinics,
and primary schools.
For its fundraising
efforts in 2004, the
IMF received the
"Champion of Health
Award" from the
Community Health
Charities Federation
of the National
Capital Area, and the
"American Red Cross
Circle of
Humanitarians Award."
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Letters from the
Field:
Managing
Director de Rato
visits development
projects in India
On visit to India
from March 17-19, IMF
Managing Director
Rodrigo de Rato met
with senior government
officials, but also
took time to visit two
social development
projects: a primary
education learning
center and an HIV/AIDS
hospice in New Delhi.
De Rato often includes
social projects in his
visits to member
countries because they
allow him to better
feel the pulse of a
country. To achieve
higher economic growth
in India, wide access
to education and
health is necessary.
By visiting these
social development
projects, de Rato
could see first hand
what many have called
the "two-speed
India"-one in the
global fast lane,
where entrepreneurial
talent and
technological
creativity are
flourishing and where
Indian companies are
becoming a global
presence, and the
other where hundreds
of millions struggle
against poverty.
After his visit to
the primary education
learning center, de
Rato visited the
Sahara Centre for Care
and Rehabilitation to
present a donation of
US$5,000 on behalf of
the Fund's
Civic Program.
Among Sahara's
projects targeting
those affected by
HIV/AIDS, are drug
treatment, HIV/AIDS
care and support,
research and advocacy.
The Government of
India estimates that
about 5.1 million
individuals are
infected with HIV. The
NGO consists of a
staff that includes 2
doctors, ten nurses
and fifty healthcare
workers working around
the clock, seven days
a week. Over 1500
people have
participated in
Sahara's programs
since 1998.
Back
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Erik
Offerdal, Resident
Representative,
Guatemala City,
Guatemala
On April 26, I
arranged a seminar for
CSOs in cooperation
with the Fund's
External Relations
Department here in
Guatemala City.
Participants included
representatives of
unions, human rights
and peasants
organizations, and
religious groups. The
seminar aimed at
providing a broad
overview of the IMF
and our activities in
Guatemala. It also
offered an opportunity
for these
organizations to
exchange views on
economic developments
and policies. During
the course of the
dialogue, CSOs
expressed strong
concerns about the
high levels of poverty
and low social
indicators in
Guatemala, and
emphasized the need
for higher levels of
social spending. They
also indicated concern
about the social
impact of the rising
international prices
on petroleum products.
In turn, we noted the
importance of
continued
macroeconomic
stability as a key
ingredient in reducing
poverty. We also
emphasized the
critical policy
challenges ahead, such
as improving the
investment climate and
raising economic
growth, and increasing
public sector revenues
to provide more
resources for social
spending.
Back
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Afghanistan.
NGOs in a changing
environment
Bruno de
Schaetzen, Resident
Representative, Kabul,
Afghanistan
Non-government
organizations (NGOs)
have played a unique
role in Afghanistan
over the last two
decades in terms of
the scope of their
work, the contribution
to alleviating poverty
and meeting
humanitarian needs,
and the harsh
conditions under which
they had to operate.
Over the last three
years, however, the
fall of the Taliban
regime, the subsequent
massive inflows of
external assistance,
and the establishment
of a freely elected
government, have
required a
reassessment of this
role. Lately, this has
led to uneasy
relations between the
government and the NGO
community. Fund and
World Bank staff,
together with
representatives of the
donor community, have
sought to mediate and
assist in establishing
a new relationship.
When the Soviet
Union invaded
Afghanistan in 1979,
most donors and
international
development
institutions were
forced to leave. Only
a handful of dedicated
international NGOs
(INGOs) continued to
operate. As civil war
swept over the country
with the ending of the
Soviet occupation, few
of the official
development agencies
were able to return.
It was again left to a
few committed INGOs to
address the deepening
social needs and,
under often gravely
dangerous and
difficult
circumstances, to try
to compensate for the
shortfall in even the
most basic government
services. Their
activities quickly
expanded, and they
often became the de
facto voice of the
international
community in
Afghanistan.
In parallel, a
vigorous national NGO
community flourished
for three main
reasons. First, during
the period of
mudjahedin resistance
to the Soviets,
various self-help
organizations emerged
to assist the refugee
population in Pakistan
with basic welfare
services. These
organizations
continued and expanded
their activities upon
their return to
Afghanistan. Second,
many Afghans in exile
organized themselves
to help alleviate the
deep sufferings of
refugees and the
population in the
country. A third
factor was a legal and
tax framework in
Afghanistan that
deeply repressed
private sector
activities, an
enduring legacy of the
Soviet occupation. The
successive civil war
governments were too
overtaken by other
problems to address
the matter, while the
Taliban felt no need
to stimulate
for-profit activities
under their theocratic
approach to economic
management. Therefore,
setting up an NGO
became virtually the
only practical way to
conduct private
economic activities.
By the end of the
Taliban regime the NGO
sector had taken on an
extraordinary
importance in the
Afghan economy, with a
contribution estimated
at over 30 percent of
non-opium GDP. It was
also virtually the
only provider of
social services.
In 2001 essentially
all the girls who were
receiving an education
did so in schools set
up by NGOs. Most of
the health clinics and
dispensaries were run
by NGOs. In some areas
even infrastructure
such as roads and
bridges were being
build by NGOs.
Paradoxically, the
growth and importance
of the sector
accelerated after the
fall of the Taliban.
Many NGOs became
implementing partners
for large donor
assistance programs as
their knowledge,
experience, and
existing structures
made them a
cost-effective and
quick vehicle to
provide aid. New INGOs
arrived and diaspora
Afghans intensified
their efforts to
assist in the
reconstruction process
and help refugees
return. Finally, with
little progress in
establishing a
supportive private
sector environment and
few restrictions to
obtaining NGO status,
many entrepreneurs set
up NGOs to take
advantage of the new
economic
opportunities.
As a result, there
are currently about
2,500 registered
national and
international NGOs,
with a majority of the
national NGOs thought
to be business
ventures. For example,
most of the domestic
constructions
companies are NGOs. As
President Karzai's
government takes on
the task of rebuilding
national institutions,
it has become clear
that reforming the NGO
sector is a priority.
The government's
concerns are
threefold. First, in
order to gain
authority and
legitimacy in the
whole country, it is
critically important
to be seen as
responsible for the
provision of basic
social and community
services. However, the
government does
recognize that its
present low level of
capacity requires a
progressive approach
to avoid causing
further distress by
cutting off the few
available social
services. Second, an
important element of
the government's
economic development
strategy is to foster
a competitive private
sector. It feels that
many NGOs-even the
legitimate ones-are
competing unfairly
with a nascent
business sector.
Third, it has given
paramount importance
to establishing a
sustainable and
equitable revenue
basis. Closing the tax
loopholes created by
businesses registering
as NGO is an important
step in its efforts to
achieve this.
These reform
intentions have lately
led to strains between
the government and the
NGO community.
Tensions were
unfortunately
aggravated by
activists who sought
to capitalize on the
perceived unpopularity
of NGOs that have been
accused of profligate
spending of aid
assistance-including
for extravagant life
styles-and lack of
unaccountability. This
has incited attacks in
the media that do not
distinguish between
responsible NGOs and
others. It also has
led to the preparation
of a draft NGO law
with what some
observers regard as
unfair and unrealistic
restrictions on
groups' activities,
particularly at a time
when the government
itself has a limited
capacity to implement
projects or provide
public services.
The response of the
legitimate NGO
community, notably led
by the Agency
Coordination Body for
Afghan Relief (ACBAR),
has been to call for
legislation that
recognizes and
supports the role of
legitimate NGOs in
Afghanistan's
development; for a
process of
re-registration of
NGOs; and for donors
to recognize the
ongoing need for
transitional funding
mechanisms. ACBAR
points out that its
members have already
largely shifted their
programming focus from
being the sole
providers of basic
services to
emphasizing their role
as facilitators and
implementers of
priority government
programs. It has also
called on its members
to recognize that as
government capacity
increases, their own
programming must
evolve. The group says
that the mix of NGO
activities should give
more emphasis to civil
society capacity
building. Finally,
ACBAR has insisted on
a voluntary code of
conduct for its
members that, among
other things, requires
them to use
independent
evaluations and audits
to become fully
accountable to
governments, donors
and the people of
Afghanistan.
The Fund mission in
Afghanistan has paid
close attention to the
impact that these
issues have on many
important aspects of
the Staff Monitored
Program. The mission
chief, Steve Symansky,
other mission members
and I have began a
dialogue with the NGO
community, notably
with the management
and members of AKBAR.
We have also been
coordinating with
other representatives
of the international
community, notably the
World Bank. Fiscal
experts from the Fund
have provided advice
to the government on a
new NGO law. Measures
to create a supportive
environment for
private business have
been made an integral
part of the Fund
program. It is
expected that work on
these issues will
intensify in the
months to come,
notably as part of the
preparation of a
Poverty Reduction
Strategy Paper and in
the process of
adjusting the National
Development Strategy
Back
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Guinea
Launches the UN Report
on the MDGs
Therese
Turner-Jones, Western
Hemisphere Department,
currently on
sabbatical in Conakry,
Guinea
While on an IMF
sabbatical in Conakry,
Guinea, where my
husband Dennis Jones
is the IMF's Resident
Representative, I am
engaged in an
independent study on
the Fund's role in
helping poor countries
achieve the MDGs. Last
month, I attended
Guinea's launch of the
Millennium Project's
Report to the UN
Secretary General
Investing in
Development: A
Practical Plan to
Achieve the Millennium
Development Goals.
The report was well
received by Guinea's
Prime Minister, Cellou
Dalein Diallo, who
noted that Guinea's
own poverty had
recently spiked
upwards from 42 to
49 percent of the
population living on
less than a dollar a
day. He pledged to put
the wheels in motion
to prepare Guinea's
needs assessment in
order to begin the
process of trying to
achieve the MDGs
by 2015. While not
involved in Guinea's
policy matters (Dennis
has his hands full), I
have the opportunity
to see and work first
hand with the
country's poor in my
spare time. My
favorite outreach is
at an orphanage that
houses 24 children
between the ages of 18
months and 17 years.
The home is officially
financed by a German
NGO, Children for a
Better World. As
one of several women
who drop by once a
week to lend moral
support-play, nurture,
talk and help
out-we're trying to
bring hope to these
children.
Also see the
previous letters from
the field, by
Therese's husband
Dennis Jones:
A field trip to Haute
Guinée and
A Meeting with
Guinea's Private
Sector.
Back
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Bulletin
Board
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Other recent
meetings between the
IMF and CSOs
- On February 9,
Pierre Duquesne,
Executive Director
for France at the
World Bank and the
IMF, and Jeff
Thindwa of the World
Bank's Civil Society
Team, participated
in a panel at the
World Bank with Mary
Kaldor of the London
School of Economics
and Helmut Anheier
of the University of
California, Los
Angeles, to present
the 2005 Global
Civil Society
Yearbook, which
Kaldor and Anheier
co-edited. Kaldor
and Anheier
presented some of
the main themes in
the new yearbook,
which suggests the
emergence of a new
global politics that
recasts sovereignty
and democracy in a
global context where
the state is only
one actor among
many.
- The IMF's
Research Department
together with the
World Bank and the
governments of the
U.K. and the
Netherlands
sponsored a
conference on
the "Macroeconomic
Policy Challenges in
Low-Income Countries"
on February 15-16 at
the IMF. It was part
of an international
research project on
the issue that is
being coordinated by
the Global
Development Network.
It concluded with a
public symposium on
development
economics. The
symposium discussed
the perspectives
presented by five
panelists, Abhijit
Banerjee of
Massachusetts
Institute of
Technology (MIT),
Tim Besley of London
School of Economics,
Simon Johnson of
MIT/IMF, Dani Rodrik
of Harvard, and John
Williamson of the
Institute for
International
Economics.
- On February 16,
Hisanobu Shishido,
mission chief for
Nepal, met with NGOs
to discuss the
political and
economic situation
in Nepal
following the
declaration of state
of emergency
throughout the
country. NGOs were
interested in the
economic
implications of the
situation, in
particular the
status of Nepal's
PRGF.
- On February 18,
Robert Gillingham,
head of the
Poverty and Social
Impact Analysis
(PSIA) section of
the IMF Fiscal
Affairs Department
(FAD), met with NGOs
in London to discuss
a progress report on
the activities of
the PSIA unit. The
discussion
emphasized the
relationship between
PSIA and the design
of the Poverty
Reduction Growth
Facility programs.
- On March 4,
Adrienne Cheasty,
Assistant Director,
and Carla Macario,
Senior Economist, of
the Western
Hemisphere
Department and EXR
staff met with a
visiting delegation
of the Committee of
Free Press from
Honduras. The
discussion focused
on the IMF's work on
fiscal transparency.
- On March 7,
Abdelrahmi Bessaha,
Senior Economist
with the IMF's
Afghanistan mission
and World Bank staff
met with a visiting
delegation from
Afghan women's
organizations
and the Washington
D.C.-based Policy
Council on Afghan
Women (PCAW) to
discuss the current
status of local
women's NGOs in
Afghanistan since
the fall of the
Taliban. Topics
included how foreign
aid can be more
effective in
supporting the
capacity-building
needs of local
women's groups, and
other
recommendations for
donors. See also the
resident
representative's "letter
from the field."
- On March 22,
Carlo Cottarelli,
Deputy Director of
the Policy
Development and
Review Department
(PDR), met with
representatives from
the Publish What You
Can Pay Campaign,
Transparency
International, Save
the Children, and
Global Witness, in
London to give an
update on the IMF's
Standards and
Codes Initiative.
- On March 15,
Robin Hodess,
director of Policy
Research at
Transparency
International
(TI) presented to
IMF staff TI's
recent findings on
assessing global
corruptive activity
as a critical aspect
of evaluating
governance. The
meeting was chaired
by Anton Op de Beke,
PDR Senior
Economist.
- On March 15,
Roger Nord, Adviser
in the African
Department, and
Anton Op de Beke,
PDR Senior
Economist, met with
a delegation from
the Association
of Episcopal
Conferences of the
Region of Central
Africa (ACERAC)
and staff from
Catholic Relief
Services to discuss
fiscal transparency
in oil revenues.
Nord gave an
overview of the
Fund's work on
fiscal transparency
with a focus on
Africa. Op de Beke
gave a more detailed
presentation of the
work on resource
revenue
transparency, with
examples from his
recent work on
Congo-Brazzaville
and from the Draft
Guide on Resource
Revenue Transparency.
IMF staff working on
Chad, Cameroon, and
Equatorial Guinea
attended the meeting
and offered accounts
of how they deal
with the issue of
transparency.
- On April 6, FAD
and EXR staff met
with the
U.S. Publish What
You Can Pay
Campaign, Human
Rights Watch,
Catholic Relief
Services, and the
Bank Information
Center to discuss
the groups' comments
on the IMF's Draft
Guide on Resource
Revenue Transparency.
- Global
Witness had a
series of meetings
with FAD, RES and
African Department
staff on fiscal
transparency issues
in general, and on
Equatorial Guinea
and Angola in
particular, that
culminated in a
meeting with IMF
Deputy Managing
Director Agustín
Carstens on
April 15. The NGO
expressed
appreciation for the
Fund work on fiscal
transparency, and
especially the Draft
Guide on Resource
Revenue Transparency,
and urged the Fund
to issue clear
guidelines to staff
on how to include
fiscal transparency
in programs in
resource-rich
countries.
- On April 25,
Jeremy Mark, EXR
Deputy Division
Chief, was a
panelist at a
China Civil Society
Roundtable
sponsored by EXR,
the World Bank's
Civil Society Team
and the World
Bank/IMF Staff Marco
Polo Society. The
discussion examined
recent developments
affecting Chinese
CSOs.
Back
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Inside the IMF
- Saleh Nsouli was
named Director of
the IMF's Offices in
Europe to succeed
Flemming Larsen.
Nsouli, a
U.S. national,
currently is Deputy
Director of the
Middle East and
Central Asia
Department, joined
the Fund in 1973.
Back
to Table of Contents
Selected
speeches
-
Transparency and
Sound Macroeconomic
Policies,
remarks by Takatoshi
Kato, IMF Deputy
Managing Director,
at the Extractive
Industries
Transparency
Initiative
Conference, London,
March 17, 2005.
-
Global Imbalances
and Global
Poverty-Challenges
for the IMF,
remarks by Rodrigo
de Rato, IMF
Managing Director at
Columbia University,
New York,
February 23, 2005.
-
Correcting Global
Imbalances-Avoiding
the Blame Game,
remarks by Rodrigo
de Rato, IMF
Managing Director,
Foreign Policy
Association
Financial Services
Dinner New York,
February 23, 2005.
-
How Stable is the
Global Economy?
Address by Anne O.
Krueger, IMF First
Deputy Managing
Director, at the
Stanford Institute
for Economic Policy
Research's Economic
Summit, Stanford,
Calif.,
February 11, 2005.
-
Sustaining Global
Growth and
Stability-The Role
of the IMF,
remarks by Rodrigo
de Rato, IMF
Managing Director,
at Georgetown
University,
Washington, D.C.,
April 6, 2005.
- 2005 Special
High-Level Meeting
of the ECOSOC with
the Bretton Woods
Institutions, the
WTO and UNCTAD,
address by Agustín
Carstens, IMF Deputy
Managing Director,
New York,
April 18, 2005.
-
Trade Policy and the
Strategy for Global
Insertion,
Speech by Anne O.
Krueger, IMF First
Deputy Managing
Director, at
Conference on Latin
America in the
Global Economy,
Notre Dame
University, South
Bend, Ind.,
April 28, 2005.
Back
to Table of Contents
Selected
publications
-
Transparency in
Central Bank
Financial Statement
Disclosures, by
Kenneth Sullivan,
Monetary and Fiscal
Systems, Working
Paper No. 05/80
-
Understanding Fiscal
Space, by Peter
S. Heller, Fiscal
Affairs Department,
Policy Discussion
Paper No. 05/4
-
Report of the
Managing Director to
the International
Monetary and
Financial Committee
on the IMF's Policy
Agenda
-
Global Monitoring
Report 2005
-
A (New) Country
Insurance Facility,
by Tito Cordella,
Eduardo L. Yeyati,
Research Department,
Working Paper No.
05/23
-
Preliminary
Assessment of the
Macroeconomic Impact
of The Tsunami
Disaster on Affected
Countries, and of
Associated Financing
Needs, prepared
by the IMF in
Cooperation with the
World Bank
-
What Hinders
Investment in the
Oil Sector?
Prepared by Kalpana
Kochhar, Sam
Ouliaris, and
Hossein Samiei
-
Evaluation of the
Technical Assistance
Provided by the
International
Monetary Fund,
Independent
Evaluation Office
-
Establishing a
Performance
Management Framework
for Government,
by Jack Diamond,
Fiscal Affairs
Department, Working
Paper No.05/50
-
Draft Issues Paper
for an Evaluation of
Structural
Conditionality in
IMF-Supported
Programs,
Independent
Evaluation Office
-
Why Do Some
Countries Manage to
Extract Growth from
Foreign Aid?
By
Jean-François
Ruhashyankiko,
Working Paper No.
05/53
-
Government Debt: A
Key Role in
Financial
Intermediation,
by Michael Kumhof,
Evan Tanner,
IMF Institute
Working Paper
No.05/53
-
Review of PRGF-HIPC
Financing, the
Adequacy of the
Reserve Account of
the PRGF Trust, and
Subsidization of
Emergency Assistance,
prepared by the
Finance Department
-
Review of the 2002
Conditionality
Guidelines,
prepared by the
Policy Development
and Review
Department in
consultation with
other departments
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