The current workplan of the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Mongolia Regional Capacity Development Center (CCAMTAC) for FY2022 foresees that Azerbaijan will benefit from country-specific technical assistance in several areas, the official at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) told Trend.
The Caucasus, Central Asia, and Mongolia Regional Capacity Development Center (CCAMTAC) is a collaborative venture between the IMF, nine member countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan), and development partners/donors (Asian Development Bank. China, Korea, Poland, Switzerland, others may join in the future), and the IMF.
Serving all countries in the region, the capacity development (CD)support will be tailored to each country’s priorities.
"During the first few months of CCAMTAC’s operation, Azerbaijan already benefited from CD in the area macroframeworks, building macro-fiscal baselines, and a stocktaking mission in the area of monetary and foreign exchange interventions operations. Also, CCAMTAC offered a number of regional workshops to which representatives from all member countries were invited, including workshops that covered issues related to budget preparation, fiscal risks of state-owned enterprises, and the impact of COVID-19 on the compilation of national accounts," the official said.
Building on the CD support that started in FY2021, the current workplan for FY2022 foresees that Azerbaijan will benefit from country-specific technical assistance in the areas of macroeconomic frameworks, budget preparation and macro-fiscal analysis, monetary policy operations, financial supervision and regulation, the compilation of government finance and public sector debt statistics, and the preparation of quarterly GDP data and selected price statistics.
"In all these areas the resident advisors and IMF headquarter staff, supported by short-term experts, will work with the authorities to determine the precise focus and priorities. In light of the evolving nature of the pandemic, the workplan will be refined and may be adjusted to emerging new priorities," the official added.
CCAMTAC also plans again a number of regional workshops to which representatives from all member countries will be invited. Topics will likely include the analysis of debt dynamics, strengthening public financial management (PFM) institutions, revenue administration priorities, issues related to dollarization and de-dollarization, and selected statistical topics.
The Center was opened virtually on February 1, 2021, ahead of its physical launch in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The Center serves a diverse and dynamic region of 80 million people and is a major step in deepening the Fund’s engagement to support stronger policy frameworks and institutions in the region, to find new and inclusive growth drivers, and to boost the region’s economic potential. The Center joined a global network of sixteen existing IMF regional capacity development centers (RCDCs).
Following the virtual inaugural steering committee meeting on January 28, 2021 the Steering Committee met virtually for the second time on June 29, 2021 to review (i) the Center’s activities since its virtual opening; (ii) to discuss CCAMTAC’s strategy, and (iii) to discuss the work program for fiscal year (FY) 2022.
Source: TREND News Agency