IMF Managing Director’s Introductory Remarks to the G20 DGI Global Conference
IMF News, June 13, 2023
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- Published: June 13, 2023
Context and why data matters
- The Data Gaps Initiative was launched in 2009 by the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors to close data gaps identified after the global financial crisis.
- A new phase was initiated in 2021 during the pandemic to cover climate change, household distributional information, data access, fintech and financial inclusion.
- Data is essential for policy decisions, especially in times of crisis and uncertainty.
Empirical findings and illustrative statistics
- While global inequality has been declining since the 1990s, more than half of the countries and close to 90 percent of advanced economies have seen an increase within-country income inequality.
- The number of registered mobile money agents has almost doubled worldwide between 2019 and 2021, mostly driven by increases in Africa and Asia.
- A single drought in Africa can lower a country’s medium-term economic growth potential by 1 percentage point.
- Official climate data are usually published with low frequency and much delay—annually, with a lag of 12 to 24 months.
Identified data gaps and consequences
- Aggregate statistics (GDP, government transfers, the Balance of Payments) conceal distributional differences across household groups and do not provide a complete picture.
- Gaps impede the ability to develop and monitor policies across:
- measures to incentivize cuts in emissions;
- regulation to mitigate risks of rapid financial innovation;
- initiatives to boost financial inclusion.
Three priorities recommended
- Priority 1 — Broaden official statistics:
- Go beyond gross domestic product in national statistics.
- Produce broader, more detailed, and more frequent official statistics, including household distributional income and wealth measures and climate indicators.
- Priority 2 — Invest in statistical infrastructure and capacity:
- Establish robust data collection systems.
- Strengthen national statistical agencies.
- Integrate new indicators into existing frameworks.
- Recognize the role of international support (including the IMF’s ‘Data for Decisions’ Fund) in helping developing countries build capacity.
- Priority 3 — Collaboration and innovation:
- Encourage cooperation across governments, international organizations, private sector, and civil society to develop new methodologies, technologies, and partnerships.
- Promote data access and cross-border sharing for internationally comparable datasets.
- Leverage private-sector data while maintaining ethical standards and protecting personal information.
Role of the IMF and the Data Gaps Initiative
- The IMF serves as a partner to the Data Gaps Initiative and complements its institutional efforts across data and statistics.
- The current phase of the Initiative is ambitious with a challenging timeline, reflecting its importance and urgency for climate change, economic inclusion, and financial innovation.
Appendix I — Introduction to the book "Data for A Greener World" (summary)
- Purpose: Present a structured discussion on measuring economic and financial dimensions of climate change; inform policymakers, economists, statisticians, academics, and the private sector.
- Collaboration: Involves seven international organizations (ECB, Eurostat, IEA, IMF, OECD, WB, WTO).
- Key themes and chapter highlights:
- Chapter 1: Estimates of quarterly greenhouse gas emissions by economic activity; methodology and applications.
- Chapter 2: Emissions by consumption and the role of international trade using global input–output tables.
- Chapter 3: Measurement of environmental taxes and expenditures; green budget tagging.
- Chapter 4: Physical risk indicators for central banks; climate stress testing and new data sources.
- Chapter 5: Approaches for measuring carbon pricing; World Bank’s indicators and framework for total carbon pricing.
- Chapter 6: IMF methodology for measuring fossil fuel subsidies and quantifying reform impacts; spreadsheet tool for estimating environmental, fiscal, and economic impacts of fuel-price reform.
- Chapter 7: Experimental indicator—the carbon footprint of bank loans—to quantify banking-sector exposure to climate transition risks.
- Chapter 8: Measures of carbon emissions associated with Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from capital formation financed by FDI and production of foreign-owned firms.
- Chapter 9: Estimating trade in low-carbon technology (LCT) products; trends, barriers to trade, and policy applications of experimental indicators.
- Common thread: Practical approaches exist to close climate data gaps using existing data sources; cooperation across institutions and fields is essential.
- Availability: Many indicators presented are available on the IMF’s Climate Change Indicators Dashboard and can be replicated by other countries, including emerging and developing economies.
Source: IMF Managing Director’s Introductory Remarks to the G20 DGI Global Conference (As prepared for delivery, June 13, 2023).