ECCB 2023-2024 Annual Report

EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK ANNUAL REPORT 2023 - 2024

developments in all eight-member countries and the wider region, which may help citizens and businesses make informed and strategic economic decisions. T echnical S upport to M ember C ountries The ECCB, as part of its overall mandate for balanced growth and development, through staff missions, continued to engage a range of stakeholders: representatives of banks, civil society and business leaders to gain a deeper appreciation of economic conditions, which would better inform the policy-making at both the national and regional levels. Bank staff continued to undertake several supportive initiatives by offering technical assistance to member countries, through missions and participation in committees such as Fiscal Responsibility Oversight Committees (FROC) in member countries. Those technical committees are intended to monitor member countries’ compliance with national fiscal rules and targets. The technical assistance came in the form of technical advice and support through publications. Given the risks from fiscal and debt challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bank also participated in several technical assistance missions geared toward enhancing debt management. Those included Commonwealth Meridian Implementation Missions, aimed at assisting member countries in the migration of their debt databases to the Commonwealth Secretariat’s web-based software application. The software is a comprehensive solution that promotes effective debt management by offering new and advance functions and features; and allows for integration, with

payment systems Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) already in use in member countries. N etworking and C ollaboration in P olicy -M aking The Bank continued to collaborate with country, regional and international partners to inform the policy-making framework. Networking meetings were convened between the Bank and representatives of Policy Units, Inland Revenue and Customs Departments, and Directors of Statistics of member countries and to keep them informed of the economic policies and trends across the ECCU and to allow member countries to share best practices. The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other forms of digitalisation has prompted concerns about the future of jobs in both advanced and emerging markets. This has exacerbated labour market issues from the COVID-19 pandemic. Skills and job trends continued to evolve worldwide, with an increasing focus on more technical workers. During the preceding year, inflation also impacted workers’ discretionary incomes. Those emerging trends and policy challenges prompted the Bank to initiate policy discussions and undertake initiatives in those areas with regional policy counterparts, including: ; a discussion on AI’s potential impact on labour market dynamics; ; An article on strategies to assist member governments in preparing for the AI revolution; and ; Engagement with stakeholders in Anguilla to explore the policy implications of the fiscal windfall from the sale of .ai domains.

52