Public Information Notice: IMF Executive Board Reviews the Fund’s Capacity Development Strategy
IMF News, June 27, 2013
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- Published: June 27, 2013
Background
- Publication date: June 27, 2013.
- Public Information Notice (PIN) No. 13/72.
- On June 12, 2013, the Executive Board considered the staff report “The Fund’s Capacity Development Strategy—Better Policies through Stronger Institutions.”
- Key context and definitions:
- Capacity development (CD) services comprise technical assistance (TA) and training focused on the Fund’s core macroeconomic and financial mandates.
- CD is one of the Fund’s core activities alongside surveillance and lending.
- The quality of economic institutions (ministries of finance, central banks, statistical agencies) depends on people, policymaking approaches, and legal and governance structures.
Executive Board assessment — overarching messages
- Directors welcomed the discussion and reaffirmed the main objective of the Fund CD program: to help build institutions and capacity in member countries to formulate and implement sound economic and financial policies.
- Directors reiterated support for the key attributes of Fund technical assistance as defined in the 2011 TA review and agreed these attributes apply to training as well:
- (i) focused on the Fund’s core macroeconomic and financial mandate;
- (ii) integrated with other core responsibilities of the Fund;
- (iii) nimble in response to changes in country needs;
- (iv) effective in strengthening institutional capacity.
- Directors noted training and TA share many conceptual elements, allowing integration into an overall CD strategy.
- Directors endorsed updating the policy statement covering CD services and putting CD on an equal footing with surveillance and lending by mandating regular and well-integrated reviews.
Prioritization, planning, and country demand
- Prioritization is a key element of the CD strategy.
- Principles and proposals endorsed by Directors:
- CD activities should be driven by country demand.
- Allocation of scarce CD resources across regions and topics should take into account the Fund’s overall strategic priorities as elaborated in the context of the global policy agenda (GPA).
- Endorsement of a two-level prioritization system reflecting both individual country demands and the Fund’s overall objectives.
- Development of staff guidance on preparation of regional strategy notes.
- Importance of ensuring authorities’ views are fully reflected in the Fund’s CD prioritization process.
Funding and donor coordination
- Observations and endorsements:
- Donor funding has emerged as an important source for Fund CD financing and is likely to continue.
- Donor-financed projects should be fully integrated into the Fund’s strategic planning and budget process.
- Endorsed a set of funding principles for CD covering the role of the Fund, the role of donors, and the additionality of donor funding.
- Funding principles should aim to:
- ensure adequate funding for CD in crisis situations;
- allow donor funding where objectives coincide;
- rely on Fund financing when donor support is not available.
- Emphasis on maintaining close and flexible coordination among the Fund, donors, and recipient countries.
- Importance of integrating the Fund’s TA and training activities with those of other international institutions and collaboration with regional and national organizations.
Monitoring, evaluation, and results-based management
- Directors considered regular evaluation crucial for learning and accountability.
- Endorsements and plans:
- Strengthen the monitoring and evaluation framework, including using evaluation feedback in prioritization and delivery of CD.
- Merit seen in a unified approach to evaluation to distill lessons, including independent external assessments as appropriate.
- Continue implementing results-based management with increasing emphasis on outcomes and clear objectives.
- The Fund uses a number of different evaluation instruments.
Information and communications technology, dissemination, and visibility
- Directors supported leveraging advances in information and communication technology to enhance effectiveness and reach of Fund CD.
- Favorable view of further development of online courses.
- Some Directors stressed finding the right balance between online and face-to-face training.
- Directors observed Fund CD activities are relatively less well-known than other areas of Fund work and encouraged further efforts to promote this line of work.
- Dissemination principles reaffirmed:
- Reaffirmation of the 2008 principles for dissemination of TA information.
- Some Directors noted sensitivities related to CD activities in some countries; others encouraged wider dissemination subject to voluntary publication.
Implementation timing
- It is expected that the next review of the Fund’s capacity development activities will be completed no later than June 2017.
Public Information Notice No. 13/72, June 27, 2013.