High-Level Summary Technical Assistance Reports
The High-Level Summary Technical Assistance Report series provides high-level summaries of the assistance provided to IMF capacity development recipients, describing the high-level objectives, findings, and recommendations.
2023
November 13, 2023
Republic of Moldova: Climate Module of the Public Investment Management Assessment
Description: Moldova has committed to an ambitious climate change mitigation and adaption agenda, which is underpinned by significant public investments, particularly in the energy sector which accounts for more than 2/3 of the country’s GHGs. The country is in the process of updating its public investment management framework, offering a window to enhance climate sensitivity of the framework, and of adopting regulation to align to EU standards. The Climate Module of the Public Investment Management Assessment (C-PIMA) proposes reforms across multiple areas, underscoring as priority areas project appraisal and selection and budgeting and portfolio management.
November 3, 2023
Peru: Central Bank Digital Currency Stakeholder Engagement
Description: An IMF mission visited Peru in June 2023. This mission was the third engagement with the Central Bank of Peru (BCRP) aimed at enhancing staff capacity for engaging directly with key stakeholders on strategic and policy matters regarding Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Building from ongoing virtual support, the mission initially assisted the BCRP to deliver a CBDC white paper, and a survey to gauge the reactions to a proposed CBDC. Also, the mission delivered an operating manual for guidance when considering innovation challenges as potential modalities for CBDC concept development. Off the back of the publication of the white paper, and on request of the BCRP, a physical mission worked with the BCRP to host an inaugural industry-wide stakeholder engagement on CBDC between June 19 and June 23, 2023. This strategic engagement marked a significant milestone for the BCRP, facilitating a candid assessment of stakeholder support for CBDC. Nine recommendations along three strategic themes surfaced from the robust and dynamic interactions.
October 25, 2023
Suriname: Financial Stability Report
Description: The technical assistance aimed to enhance the financial stability report (FSR) of the Central Bank of Suriname. The mission concluded that the preparation of detailed FSR production plan and communication strategy are critical and could facilitate improvements, promote the report, and bring some synergies between different teams involved. The report should reflect on all important elements of financial stability assessment and needs to be streamlined to follow the central story with the key messages. The quality of the report could be further improved by advancements in the employed analytical toolkit and utilization of all available data sources.
October 17, 2023
Zimbabwe: FSSR Follow Up Technical Assistance—Implementation of the Basel II/III Capital Framework
Description: The Financial Sector Stability Review (FSSR), which was conducted in November 2018, identified areas requiring improvement and technical assistance in Zimbabwe’s regulatory and supervisory frameworks, including the need to strengthen the capital framework for the banking sector. With the support of the IMF, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) is planning to implement Basel III capital standards, considering Zimbabwe’s specific circumstances and applying proportionality. The mission reviewed Zimbabwe’s capital framework, which includes laws and regulations, identified areas for updating capital requirements, and discussed them with the RBZ management. The mission also made recommendations for drafting amendments that align primarily with the Basel III capital framework, particularly focusing on standardized approaches.
September 29, 2023
Republic of Armenia: Review of Tax Expenditures
Description: This paper presents a high-level summary technical assistance report on Republic of Armenia’s review of tax expenditures. The Summary Technical Assistance Report series provides high-level summaries of the assistance provided to IMF capacity development recipients, describing the high-level objectives, findings, and recommendations. Supporting the authorities’ objective to consolidate revenue, this technical assistance report assesses tax expenditures in Armenia. The report covers major tax expenditures related to the value-added tax, excise taxes, the profit tax, and the personal income tax. With total estimated tax expenditures in excess of 5.5 percent of gross domestic product in 2021, streamlining preferential regimes, exemptions and incentives has strong potential for boosting revenue while improving the equity and efficiency of the tax system. The micro-entrepreneur regime could be repealed to subject those enterprises to the turnover tax. The income tax exemptions granted to public caterers, free economic zones and securities could likewise be repealed.
September 4, 2023
Project Summary:: Nordic-Baltic Technical Assistance Project – Financial Flows Analysis, AML/CFT Supervision, and Financial Stability
Description: This paper focuses on the summary of Nordic-Baltic Regional Technical Assistance Project Financial Flows Analysis, Anti-Money Laundering and combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Supervision, and Financial Stability. Various international banking scandals concerning AML/CFT breaches have taken place in the Nordic Baltic region, with far-reaching financial and reputational consequences. Financial integrity issues could potentially present risks to financial stability in the short and medium term. The depth of geographic ML/TF risk analysis and understanding differs among the Nordic-Baltic countries. There has been clear investment in ML/TF risk models across the region, but some gaps remain, notably, advanced data collection and analysis. Quantifying the financial stability impact of money laundering shocks is an understudied area. AML/CFT regimes in the region would benefit from better understanding of the ML threats associated with cross-border financial flows and nonresident activities. In order to address cross-border AML vulnerabilities, efforts to enhance the supervisory understanding of ML risks, strengthen the risk-based supervision of banks and crypto asset service providers, and deepen cooperation should continue.
September 1, 2023
Colombia: Assessment of Financial Stability
Description: This paper presents Colombia’s Assessment of financial stability report (FSR). The FSR of the Banco de la República of Colombia (BR) provides broad coverage of macroeconomic environment and the assessment of risks in the financial system. The biannual report is considered as one of the main sources of data and information on financial stability in Colombia, and the BR makes presentation on the key messages to the public at the time of the publication. The current structure of the FSR appears to work well in covering a range of relevant risks and vulnerabilities as well as topical issues, but there is room for evolution. A layered communication approach would help adapt the key messages of the FSR to audiences with different levels of expert knowledge and interest. There would be clear gains in deepening the understanding of the channels and interaction between financial stability and monetary policy as the financial system continues to evolve.
August 22, 2023
The Bahamas: Operationalizing the New Bank Resolution Framework and Amended Deposit Insurance Legislation - Second Mission
Description: This technical assistance report on The Bahamas focuses on operationalizing the new bank resolution framework and amended deposit insurance legislation-second mission. The Bahamas has made considerable progress in developing the legal framework, infrastructure, and key tools for an effective bank recovery and resolution regime and is taking steps to operationalize the regime. Effective operationalization of the resolution regime will also require review and reform in other key framework areas, including contingency arrangements for public resolution funding if required, fully implementing the deposit insurance system, and establishing a program of regular testing. Strengthening and updating the supervisory early intervention and recovery planning frameworks and requirements are critical to maintaining financial system stability in the context of acknowledged limits of the structure and depth of the financial system that, in turn, constrain resolution options. Enhancement of the underpinning legislation is recommended to support building out and implementing the operational infrastructure for bank resolution.
August 8, 2023
Maldives: Developing a Legal, Policy and Operational Framework for the Sovereign Development Fund
Description: This High-Level Summary technical assistance report focuses on developing a legal, policy and operational framework for the sovereign development fund (SDF) in Maldives. Until the fiscal situation in Maldives improves, the SDF could continue to usefully serve the twin objectives of external debt repayment and credit enhancement. It has helped boost investor confidence, enabling Maldives continued access to international financial markets, and come in handy for liquidity management during the pandemic. Decisions are required on the size of the SDF, the treatment of any excess inflows, and the application of the Fund’s balance upon its liquidation. While the fund size of a sinking fund would correspond to the underlying debt, a credit enhancement objective would consider a combination of factors, such as market conditions, credit standing, liabilities covered by the fund, and the medium-term debt strategy. A strong governance framework would enhance the legitimacy, performance, and accountability of the IMF.
June 30, 2023
Republic of San Marino: Report on the Financial Soundness Indicators and Monetary and Financial Statistics Technical Assistance Mission
Description: This paper presents the report on the financial soundness indicators (FSI) and monetary and financial statistics (MFS) technical assistance mission in San Marino. The mission reviewed and updated the bridge tables that are used to compile the FSIs for transmission to the statistics department (STA). Source data for compiling FSIs for commercial banks are adequate and generally meet the criteria established by the 2019 FSIs Guide for publication in the IMF’s FSI data portal. The mission also recommends updating the metadata accompanying the publication of revised FSIs. Because of the mission, the Central Bank of San Marino should be able to implement the new FSI Standardized Reports, FSI Institutional Coverage and FSI Metadata. The mission also reviewed the treatment of banks in liquidation in the compilation of MFS, particularly the recent case of banks in suspension of payments. A timeframe for reporting new FSI report forms and revised MFS data to STA has also been discussed and agreed on with the authorities.