IMF Archives: Finding Aids
Asian Department Records
Date(s): 1964-1988 |
Context
Name of Creator: Asian Department
Administrative/Biographical history: The Asian Department (ASD) was created in May 1953, following several reorganizations of the area work of the IMF. ASD, which at the time, was comprised of the Far Eastern and South Asian Divisions, assumed responsibility for the functions previously performed by the Far Eastern, Middle Eastern, and Latin American Department (FML). The latter was created in 1950. The Far Eastern Division of ASD oversaw China, Indo-China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Nepal, the Philippines, and Thailand, while the South Asia Division was responsible for Burma, Ceylon, and India.
By 1973 ASD comprised five geographical divisions: Far Eastern Division (Republic of China, Japan and Korea); South Asia Division (Burma, Khmer Republic, Laos and South Viet-Nam): Southeast Asia Division (Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand); South Pacific Division (Fiji, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Western Samoa) and West Asia Division (Bangladesh, India and Nepal). Effective August 1979, the divisions within ASD were re-categorized, A, B, C, D and E.
In the years that followed, ASD underwent further reorganization as work processes increased due to the addition of member counties. A sixth division was added in 1984 and member countries totaled 23. In 1991 the Department was restructured to form two new area departments, the Southeast Asia and Pacific Department (SEA) and the Central Asia Department (CTA), each with its own Director and each responsible for four divisions. The departments later merged in 1998 to form the Asia and Pacific Department (APD).
Since its inception, ASD has functioned to maintain, coordinate and negotiate relations between member countries and staff; provide staff personnel and expertise for missions to the respective member countries; maintain and organize monetary and financial information on member countries; and prepare reviews for the Executive Board. In addition to these functions, the Asian Department worked collaboratively with the former Exchange Restrictions Department and other related Departments to make recommendations on "proposals with respect to exchange restrictions and multiple rates by individual member countries".
The work of the area divisions within ASD is coordinated, guided and reviewed by the Immediate Office whose staff are assigned to work on a member country for specified periods of time, often in connection with a mission. At the end of each mission formal reports for Board action are produced. In some instances, the conduct of business and collection of country information is "facilitated by the posting of resident representatives who are supervised by the department." Since 1973 Resident Representative Offices have been maintained, at one time or another, in Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Khmer Republic, Korea, Laos, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, South Vietnam and Western Samoa.
Directors of ASD include: Hirendra Lal Dey (1953-1956); James Samuel Raj (1956-1959); Dattatraya Sitraram Savkar (1959-1972); U. Tun Thin (1972-1986); Prabhakar R. Narvekar (1986-1991); Hubert Neiss - CTA (1991-1997); Kunio Saito - SEA (1991-1997); Hubert Neiss (1998-2000); Yusuke Horiguchi (2000-2002); David Burton (2002-present).
Content and structure
Scope and content: Fonds contains records of the Asian Department maintained by its Immediate Office covering the mid 1960s to the late 1980s. The fonds comprises five series: Country Files, Subject Files, Administrative Files, International Organization Files and material created and maintained by John Woodley, Deputy Director, Asian Department (1966-1980). Records of former Director Hubert Neiss are maintained by the Archives. They are currently closed under the time-rule of the Policy on Access to IMF Archives.
Conditions of Access and Use
Conditions governing access and reproduction: Contains closed material.
Associated Materials
Related units of description: Refer to the Central Files collection for a complete set of Country Files.
Under the Policy on Access to the IMF's Archives only archival materials that are 20 years old or older are open to researchers.
For re-use of digital archival documents where available, it is the responsibility of the individual to obtain permission from the copyright owner.