Supplement To The Guidance Note For Surveillance Under Article Iv Consultations

This note provides updated guidance to country teams on bilateral surveillance in the context of Article IV consultations in light of the COVID crisis. This guidance impacts the focus, format and presentation of staff reports while keeping intact the substance of all existing Board-endorsed requirements. Similarly, all aspects of the comprehensive 2015 Guidance Note for Surveillance Under Article IV Consultations also remain in effect, except as modified below. This supplement aims to strengthen the focus of Fund surveillance on the fallout from the crisis and related challenges flexibly to adapt to a rapidly evolving context and will remain in effect, in the absence of further communication, until comprehensive new guidance is issued following the completion of the upcoming Comprehensive Surveillance Review.

This Guidance Note provides guidance to country teams for surveillance under Article IV consultations. It supersedes the 2015 Guidance Note and its supplement. Fund surveillance continuously adapts to the evolving economic and financial landscape. The 2021 Comprehensive Surveillance Review (CSR) identified priorities for Fund surveillance, both in terms of content and modalities. This Guidance Note covers: Scope and requirements: The note lays out the coverage of, and formal requirements for, Article IV consultations and staff reports. It also outlines best practices aimed at enhancing the traction of Fund analysis and policy advice. Priorities and focus. The note reflects the four surveillance priorities identified in the CSR: (i) confronting risks and uncertainties, (ii) preempting and mitigating spillovers, (iii) ensuring economic sustainability, and (iv) adopting a more unified approach to policy advice. The note also provides guidance on sharpening the focus and selectivity of Article IV staff reports. Policies. The note discusses the content of surveillance in the areas of fiscal policy, macrofinancial analysis and financial policies, monetary policy, external sector policies, and macrostructural policies. Applications. The note considers several applications of such policies, such as with respect to the Integrated Policy Framework, climate change, and gender. Process and procedures. The note describes the Article IV consultation cycle and process, lays out drafting and publication guidelines for staff reports, and covers the treatment of confidential information.

This note provides country teams with guidance on bilateral and multilateral surveillance in the context of Article IV consultations. It covers the following issues: Focus on stability. Stability is the organizing principle of surveillance. Article IV consultations should focus on the conduct of economic and financial policies pursued by members to promote present and prospective domestic and balance of payments stability, as well as global economic and financial stability. For the latter, Article IV consultations should discuss spillovers from members’ economic and financial policies that may significantly affect global stability, including alternative policy options that would minimize their adverse impact. Operational guidance. The note provides detailed guidance, suggestions and references in areas covered in surveillance including risks and spillovers, fiscal policy, macrofinancial and monetary policy, BOP stability, structural policies and data issues. Communication and Engagement. Effective two-way communication is key to surveillance, including with the authorities (to help staff’s advice get traction), the Executive Board (to support effective peer review), and the public and other stakeholders (to gain support for necessary policy adjustments). Surveillance messages need to be clear, concise, and focused. The Fund needs to be evenhanded, in line with the principle of uniformity of treatment, for surveillance to command the confidence of the membership. Process and formal requirements. A number of procedures, rules, and requirements are summarized in this note.

This note provides guidance to staff on the conduct of surveillance in the context of Article IV consultations, a core activity of the Fund. Surveillance involves the continuous monitoring of members‘ economic and financial policies and their impact on their own and global stability. During Article IV consultations, staff holds pointed discussions with country authorities on the economic situation, the authorities‘ policies and how these affect the country‘s stability, the role of potential or actual spillovers where relevant, and desirable policy adjustments. These discussions are then reported to the Fund‘s Executive Board for its consideration. The goal, through thorough analysis, candid discussions, and a peer-review mechanism, is to promote the stability of members‘ economies, as well as the effective operation of the international monetary system, including through maintaining global stability.

This note provides guidance to facilitate the staff’s advice on macroprudential policy in Fund surveillance. It elaborates on the principles set out in the “Key Aspects of Macroprudential Policy,” taking into account the work of international standard setters as well as the evolving country experience with macroprudential policy. The main note is accompanied by supplements offering Detailed Guidance on Instruments and Considerations for Low Income Countries

Twelfth Periodic Monitoring Report On The Status Of Management Implementation Plans In Response To Board-Endorsed IEO Recommendations

This note provides guidance to staff on the implementation of the Fund’s Transparency Policy. The objectives of the policy include strengthening the Fund’s effectiveness by providing the public with access to Fund views and deliberations, thus informing public debate and building traction for the Fund’s advice, supporting the quality of surveillance and of programs, by subjecting the Fund to outside scrutiny, and enhancing the Fund’s legitimacy by making the institution more accountable. A Transparency Policy Decision (referred to in the remainder of this note as “the Decision”) sets out rules for the modification and publication of all Board documents.

Globalisation has created many opportunities for economic development, but it is also associated with rising income inequality and poverty. International crises such as the international financial and economic crisis of 2008, and more recently the global health pandemic, have led to a rise in unemployment and income losses for workers and a surge in the violation of workers’ rights. At global level intergovernmental organisations including the World Bank and the IMF are influential actors and policy makers which promote the UN Sustainable Development Goals. However, the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) have been criticised for their internal political power imbalances and macroeconomic policy prescriptions based on neo-liberal principles. The Global Unions and their affiliates as well as the International Labour Organisation (ILO) regularly comment on the negative impact of the IFI’s policies in regard to labour flexibilisation and the privatisation of public and social services. In 2002 a formalised dialogue was established between the Global Unions and the IFIs which addresses labour, social and environmental issues. This dialogue takes place at three levels: the country level, the sector level, and the headquarters level. The ILO maintains its own dialogue with the IFIs, but it also participates at the headquarters-level dialogue between the Global Unions and the IFIs. Employment Relations and Global Governance focuses on the headquarters-level dialogue which can be considered as a strategic instrument that helps the Global Unions and their affiliates to exercise influence over the policies of the IFIs, especially those policies which concern workers. The book describes and analyses the development of the dialogue since its establishment with a particular focus on factors which promote and hinder the dialogue. The book provides important insights into the real-world functioning of the institutions of economic global governance and its broader impact on the world of work. It is likely to be key reading for academics, researchers and students studying global employment relations, political economy, and international organisations. It will also be of interest to international and national trade unions, non-governmental organisations, and policy makers.