Technical Notes and Manuals

Technical Notes and Manuals are produced by IMF departments to expand the dissemination of their technical assistance advice. These papers present general advice and guidance, drawn in part from unpublished technical assistance reports, to a broader audience. This new series launched in September 2009.

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2014

July 9, 2014

Prevention and Management of Government Arrears

Description: The accumulation of government expenditure arrears is one of the most common problems in public financial management. This technical note defines expenditure arrears and the different types of arrears that arise. The economic impact of chronic expenditure arrears accumulation is highlighted. The note discusses the underlying causes and mechanisms for preventing and controlling the further accumulation of arrears. The note concludes with some strategies for managing and clearing arrears.

Notes: Full text also available in French and Spanish.

June 17, 2014

Revenue Administration: Administering Revenues from Natural Resources - A Short Primer

Description: Many developing countries have significant natural resource endowments, presenting a remarkable opportunity to boost long-term growth. However, this opportunity comes with enormous challenges. To maximize social and economic benefits, strong governance and institutional capacity are essential. Effective and transparent tax administration is crucial for properly managing revenues from natural resources so the country may benefit economically and socially from its natural resources. Revenue Administration describes the challenges that developing countries face and presents good practices to help build countries’ long-term institutional capacity.

February 27, 2014

Direct Reporting of Private Sector Cross-Border Financial Flows and Stocks in Selected African Countries

Description: Private cross-border financial flows and stocks have grown to account for an increasingly significant part of overall transactions and positions in many African countries. Direct reporting through enterprise surveys has become a key data source to enable them to be measured accurately. The paper describes a multi-year technical assistance project in The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, and Nigeria, where annual enterprise surveys are now established. To varying degrees, the survey results have been incorporated into the balance of payments and International Investment Position statistics. The case studies may serve as a useful reference for other countries embarking on efforts to establish direct reporting of cross-border financial flows and stocks.

2013

May 10, 2013

Definitions of Government in IMF-Supported Programs

Description: This note addresses the following main issues: • Statistical definitions of government (Government Finance Statistics Manual 2001) • Institutional structure of government and public sector • What is a precise definition of government and why it is relevant • Potential pitfalls of lacking a precise definition of government • Definitions of government in IMF-supported programs • Applications for fiscal rules and other fiscal policy design

Notes: Online Appedix

January 24, 2013

Automatic Fuel Pricing Mechanisms with Price Smoothing: Design, Implementation, and Fiscal Implications

Description: Many developing and emerging countries do not fully pass-through increases in international fuel prices to domestic retail prices, with adverse consequences for fuel tax revenues and tax volatility. The adoption of an automatic fuel pricing mechanism can help to address this problem, and the incorporation of a price smoothing mechanism can ensure pass-through over the medium term but also avoid sharp increases (and decreases) in domestic prices. This technical note addresses the following issues: (i) the design of an automatic fuel pricing mechanism; (ii) the incorporation of domestic price smoothing and resulting tradeoffs; (iii) the transition from ad hoc pricing adjustments to an automatic mechanism; and (iv) policies to support this transition and the maintenance of an automatic mechanism. A standardized template for simulating and evaluating the implications of alternative pricing mechanisms for price and fiscal volatility is available on request.

January 16, 2013

Government Cash Management: Relationship between the Treasury and the Central Bank

Description: This technical note and manual (TNM) addresses the following main issues: Interaction between treasury cash management and monetary policy operations within the wider context of the respective economic responsibilities of the ministry of finance and the central bank; Institutional arrangements for an effective relationship between the treasury and the central bank; Contractual arrangements between the treasury and the central bank for the provision of banking and other services. This document will be particularly relevant to developing countries that are reforming cash management operations or contemplating more active cash management; or where there are operational policy differences between the treasury and the central bank.

Notes: Full text also available in Spanish.

2012

September 27, 2012

A Template for Analyzing and Projecting Labor Market Indicators

Description: This note is a reference guide for the unemployment template, an econometric tool that allows researchers to analyze and project labor market indicators for any country with sufficient data coverage. Section I explains the motivation behind designing a new surveillance tool to study labor markets, and summarizes the key features of the template. Section II details the data inputs needed and their sources. Section III describes the methods used to estimate the employment-growth elasticity, a measure of the extent to which employment responds to output. Section IV outlines the medium-term outlook table and projection charts created by the template once the inputs are customized to generate an appropriate elasticity. Finally, Section V presents a discussion on how to interpret the results produced by the template, and of the issues that arise from projecting labor market indicators.

Notes: Full text also available in Arabic, French, and Russian.

2011

November 9, 2011

Operational Risk Management and Business Continuity Planning for Modern State Treasuries

Description: This technical note and manual addresses the following main issues: 1. What is operational risk management and how this should be applied to treasury operations. 2. What is business continuity and disaster recovery planning and why it is important for treasury operations? 3. How to develop and implement a business continuity and disaster recovery plan using a six practical-step process and how to have it imbedded into the day-to-day operations of the treasury. 4. What is needed to activate and what are the key procedures when activating the disaster recovery plan.

Notes: Full text also available in Spanish.

October 17, 2011

Chart of Accounts: A Critical Element of the Public Financial Management Framework

Description: This technical note and manual (TNM) addresses the following main issues: • Discusses the purpose of a chart of accounts and its importance in public financial management • Discusses stakeholder needs in a typical public financial management framework that need to be reflected in a chart of accounts • Discusses the role of chart of accounts in budgetary and financial accounting • Discusses the relation between the chart of accounts and IFMIS • Explains key steps for identifying data requirements and structures for developing a chart of accounts

Notes: Full text also available in Spanish.

October 17, 2011

Treasury Single Account: An Essential Tool for Government Cash Management

Description: This technical note and manual addresses the following main issues: 1. Discusses the problems of fragmented government banking arrangements and how a treasury single account (TSA) could address them. 2. Explains the concept of a TSA and describes its features. 3. Discusses the design issues that need to be considered in setting up a TSA system. 4. Discusses the preconditions and key sequencing and implementation issues that need to be addressed in establishing a TSA.

Notes: Full text also available in Spanish

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