A Spotlight on the IMF’s Technical Assistance

Posted on October 13, 2011 by iMFdirect

Of the three main pillars of the IMF’s work, technical assistance has been a sort of middle child; it doesn’t get the attention of the oldest and youngest children, yet in many ways is the glue that holds the family together.

The other two pillars are well known: we lend money to countries in times of need and crisis, and conduct annual check-ups of their economies and financial systems, known as surveillance.

As countries around the world cope with the global economic crisis, the IMF’s technical assistance is a vital part of the work that we do to help countries prevent, prepare for and resolve crises.

A new strategy for technical assistance is under discussion at the IMF and there are five key areas we need to focus on: adapting to countries’ evolving needs, more cooperation with donors, new ways to deliver technical assistance, the importance of training, and a focus on results.

Filed under: Advanced Economies, Africa, Economic Crisis, IMF, International Monetary Fund, Low-income countries | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments »

Haves and Have Less—Why Inequality Throws Us Off Balance

Posted on September 14, 2011 by iMFdirect

We used to think that overall economic growth would pull everyone up. While the rich might be getting richer, everyone would benefit and would see higher living standards. That was the unspoken bargain of the market system. But now research is showing that, in many countries, inequality is on the rise and the gap between the rich and the poor is widening, particularly over the past quarter-century.

Filed under: IMF, Inequality, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Rethinking Economic Principles: Join the Debate

Posted on May 2, 2011 by iMFdirect

The global financial crisis caused hardship and suffering all over the world. To prevent a repeat, we need to rethink…

“… what we know about economic theory …. We need to rethink, following this, the policies … coming from the analytical work. And then we will need also to rethink multilateralism.” IMF Managing Director Dominique Straus-Kahn (April, 2011)

A wholesale reexamination of macroeconomic principles in the wake of the crisis was the goal of a conference at the IMF in early March.

But, for Olivier Blanchard and others, the conference was merely “the beginning of a conversation, the beginning of an exploration.” Here is our list of recommended reads to help you be part of the conversation.

Filed under: Economic Crisis, Economic research, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 7 Comments »

South Africa’s Unemployment Puzzle

Posted on April 4, 2011 by iMFdirect

The big blemish on South Africa’s otherwise strong economic performance since the mid-1990s is stubbornly high unemployment. Of course this is an important exception, especially as it has exacerbated income inequality.

Unemployment in South Africa was already very high before the crisis, but the enormous job losses during 2008-09 made the already dire situation much worse. It now stands at some 24 percent—more than double the unemployment rate in the United States—and youth unemployment is phenomenally higher still at some 50 percent.

Reducing unemployment is the foremost economic challenge facing South Africa. Here’s my take on what is needed.

Filed under: Africa, Economic Crisis, Economic research, Emerging Markets, Employment, Inequality, International Monetary Fund, Politics, Public debt | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments »

New Policy Ideas for a New World: Interview with Robert Solow

Posted on April 2, 2011 by iMFdirect

There has been plenty of reflection, during the past few years, on the causes of the global financial crisis. But, last month’s conference at the IMF focused on taking what we’ve learned from the crisis and looking toward the future of economic policy.

Nobel Prize winning economist, Robert Solow, was among those who brought interesting perspectives and a wealth of experience to the conference discussions. Listen to Professor Solow’s interview and what he has to say about the main challenges for policymakers today, and the future of monetary and fiscal policy.

Filed under: Economic Crisis, Economic research, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

No End in Sight: Early Lessons on Crisis Management

Posted on March 9, 2011 by iMFdirect

In times of crisis, choices must be made. In the most recent global economic crisis, policymakers moved quickly to stabilize the system, providing massive financial support, which is the right response in the beginning of any crisis. But that only treated the symptoms of the global financial meltdown, and now a rare opportunity is being thrown away to tackle the underlying causes.

In our new paper, we analyze the policy choices made during the crisis and compare them to a number of past ones. It turns out the phases of this crisis followed the same pattern as previous ones, but policymakers made different choices this time around. This post lays out the lessons that we should learn.

Filed under: Advanced Economies, Economic Crisis, Financial Crisis, Financial regulation, Financial sector supervision, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments »

Bridges to Growth, Not Roads to Nowhere: Scaling Up Infrastructure Investment in Low-Income Countries

Posted on December 3, 2010 by iMFdirect

For low-income countries, the absence of reliable infrastructure—roads, railways, ports, but also power supply—has become an increasingly binding constraint on growth. And we know that investment in infrastructure can raise productivity, boost growth, and help reduce poverty. But as straightforward as it sounds, getting investment decisions right is no easy feat.

The current fragile outlook for many advanced economies also means they’re less likely to be a big source of growth or financing for the foreseeable future. The key issue now is for low-income countries to unlock new sources of growth and investment financing. At the same time, the more robust recoveries of dynamic emerging market economies and their new status as development partners brings fresh perspectives.

Filed under: Economic Crisis, LICs, Low-income countries, Public debt | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments »

Listening to Voices: The IMF’s Dialogue with Civil Society

Posted on November 29, 2010 by iMFdirect

The IMF has made a concerted effort to engage more actively with civil society organizations in recent years. And, an emphasis on change at the 2010 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings provided the perfect opportunity to break new ground in our relationship with civil society.

More civil society representatives came to the meetings than ever before, and those that came participated in a wider range of events. Many of those events took on a different flavor: one more conducive to a meaningful exchange of views.

Civil society is thirsty for information about what we do, why we do it, and how. But this is also a two-way street. There is a lot at the IMF we can learn from civil society and we have to start by listening.

Filed under: Annual Meetings, Civil Society, IMF, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Forewarned Is Forearmed: How the Early Warning Exercise Expands the IMF’s Surveillance Toolkit

Posted on September 23, 2010 by iMFdirect

“Never again can we let ourselves be caught unprepared by an economic and financial crisis of such global magnitude.” This was the spirit, in late 2008, in which G-20 Finance Ministers tasked the IMF and the Financial Stability Board to jointly develop an Early Warning Exercise (EWE). The inspiration was clear: In the wake of the onset of unprecedented financial turmoil, policymakers recognized that earlier danger signs had not been synthesized into an actionable warning. The EWE was intended to fill the analytical gap—to produce an effective “call to arms” as threats emerge, but well before crises erupt. Here, IMF First Deputy Managing Director John Lipsky discusses how the EWE works, and how it will help to more systematically and effectively reduce the risk of a new global crisis.

Filed under: Advanced Economies, Economic Crisis, Emerging Markets, Financial Crisis, IMF, International Monetary Fund | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

Saving the Lost Generation

Posted on September 14, 2010 by iMFdirect

Oslo was the scene this week of a remarkable event that brought together global leaders from government, business, trade unions, and academia to discuss what many of them said is the biggest issue facing the world today: the jobs crisis. In this blog, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn reflects on unemployment today—the highest level in history—and, importantly, about what can be done to save the potentially “lost generation” of unemployed young people.

Filed under: Economic Crisis, Employment, growth, IMF, International Monetary Fund, Multilateral Cooperation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

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