Press Release No. 15/142

Press Release: IMF’s Africa Training Institute to Increase Training in Fiscal Year 2016

March 26, 2015

The Africa Training Institute (ATI) Steering Committee envisages a significant increase in training activities for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016¹ thanks to fresh funding pledges. The Committee met in N’Djamena, Chad, on March 25, 2015 for its annual meeting to discuss scaling-up options.² In light of the sizeable demand for training in sub-Saharan Africa, the Committee called for additional funding (about $5 million), including from recipient countries, in support of further ATI training during FY 2016-18.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Ngarlenan, Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance and Budget of Chad and Chairman of the Steering Committee meeting, highlighted the importance of capacity development in the critical areas of macroeconomic management, finance, inclusive growth, revenue mobilization, and statistics amid a difficult external environment facing many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. He saw significant benefits from a close collaboration between the ATI and the African Regional Technical Assistance Centers (AFRITACs) in intensifying capacity development in these areas.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Chairman Ngarlenan and Mr. Vitaliy Kramarenko, ATI Director, made the following statement:

“Members of the Steering Committee noted significant progress in implementing the training program for FY 2015. They appreciated the relevance and quality of courses delivered at the ATI training facilities in Mauritius, the increased collaboration between the ATI and the AFRITACs, and productive high-level events organized for senior officials by the ATI.

“Members of the Steering Committee welcomed progress in fund raising. They commended new pledges of financial support by Angola, Korea, Seychelles, and Togo. Thanks to these pledges, the ATI training activities will be scaled up beginning from FY 2016. The Steering Committee also expressed its appreciation to Mauritius, Australia, and China for their funding to the ATI. The Steering Committee called for additional funding (about $5 million), including from recipient countries, to further scale up ATI’s operations to the original program level.

“Members of the Steering Committee endorsed the work program for FY 2016, envisaging a significant increase in ATI training activities. They welcomed the increased emphasis on fiscal issues and debt sustainability, and supported the continued training efforts on monetary policy framework operations, financial sector issues, and general macroeconomic management, in particular for low-income countries. Members of the Steering Committee saw significant scope for a further strengthening of the collaboration between the ATI, AFRITACs, and other training providers in Africa to leverage the expertise of the ATI staff and the availability of modern training facilities in Mauritius. They also requested to increase training opportunities in French.

“Members of the Steering Committee noted that the joint management model for the ATI and AFRITAC South was conducive to generating significant synergies between training and technical assistance. In light of this positive experience, the Steering Committee agreed that the joint management arrangement should be made permanent.

“The Steering Committee agreed that the next meeting will take place in Mauritius, in April 2016.”

Background and useful links:

The IMF opened the ATI in June 2013. The ATI helps African governments develop the economic policymaking capacity necessary to sustain the continent’s recent economic gains and cope with emerging challenges. It offers 12-13 training courses per year in its modern training facilities in Mauritius, provides training inputs into technical assistance projects implemented by AFRITACs, and cooperates with other regional partners in training delivery.

www.imfati.org

http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/afritac.htm

¹ FY 2016 begins on May 1, 2015.

² The Steering Committee was attended by the Chairs of the Steering Committees of AFRITAC Central, AFRITAC West 1, and AFRITAC West 2, representatives of donor countries—Mauritius and Togo, and IMF staff members. Participating observers included representatives of the African Development Bank, the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute for Eastern and Southern Africa, the West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management, the Government of Burundi, and the German Development Cooperation Agency GIZ. Representatives of the World Bank, the ambassador of France in Chad, and the charge d’affaire of the U.S. embassy in Chad attended the opening session.