2019-2020 Annual Report and Statement of Accounts

FISCAL AND DEBT SUSTAINABILITY

Provide policy advice to Participating Governments and facilitate capacity building of member countries for effective debt management Technical Assistance to Debt Management Offices During the financial year, the Bank provided technical support to five member countries to update their Medium Term Debt Management Strategy (MTDS). The debt strategy is a policy tool that allows those Member Governments who benefitted from the technical support to plan, manage and source their borrowing requirements at the lowest possible cost consistent with a prudent degree of risk over the medium term. The Bank continues to encourage Member Governments to utilise such policy tools to inform their funding needs through a systematic and transparent approach, especially given the current uncertain economic conditions. The Bank continued to collaborate with the Commonwealth Secretariat to implement its new debt software, Commonwealth Meridian, in two pilot countries – Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis and Saint Lucia. The new software was launched in June 2019 and incorporates advanced and improved functionalities to address emerging debt management requirements and takes advantage of the latest state-of-the- art technologies. The Bank also engaged in discussions with the Regional Debt Coordinating Committee (RDCC) on 24 March 2020, with a focus on COVID-19. The meeting discussed approaches for minimising the impact on long-term objectives such as the achievement of the Debt to GDP ratio target of 60.0 per cent by 2030 and the protection of the RGSM, which provides significant benefits to Member Governments. Research Papers and Policy Briefs The Bank’s economic surveillance function focused on monitoring developments in member countries, through the publication of periodic reviews, annual report and policy briefs on issues affecting the socio-economic landscape of member countries. During the review period, the Bank prepared and published two Economic and Financial Review reports. The reports provide a historical review of the economic and financial performance of member countries for the first half of 2019 and the entire year. In addition, the Bank prepared a number of influential policy briefs covering thematic areas such as: Growth and Development, Fiscal and Debt Sustainability, Fiscal Risk Management, Payment Systems Innovation, Crime Prevention Strategy, Labour Market Constraints and Infrastructural Development for boosting economic competitiveness. The Bank will continue to work towards strengthening its surveillance system to meet new demands brought on by a changing economic landscape. To this end, the Bank is in the process of finalising the roll out of its Macro Diagnostic Framework . The new system is expected to facilitate improved diagnosis of member countries’ stability and structural issues and allow for better prescriptive policy outcomes.

The Bank prepared a number of influential policy briefs covering thematic areas such as: Growth and Development, Fiscal and Debt Sustainability, Fiscal Risk Management, Payment Systems Innovation, Crime Prevention Strategy, Labour Market Constraints and Infrastructural Development for boosting economic competitiveness.

Read Economic and Financial Review Reports

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