This report seeks to help the IMF enhance its effectiveness by identifying major recurring issues from the IEO’s first 20 evaluations and assessing where they stand. The IMF’s core areas of responsibility are surveillance, lending, and capacity development. The aim of this report is to strengthen the follow-up process by focusing on key issues that recurred in IEO evaluations, rather than on specific recommendations on their implementation. The IEO believes that a framework of reviewing and monitoring recurring issues would be useful in establishing incentives for progress, strengthening the Board’s oversight, and providing learning opportunities for the IMF.

This paper sets out Management’s response to the Independent Evaluation Office’s (IEO) evaluation of Recurring Issues from a Decade of Evaluation: Lessons for the IMF.

"The Ninth Periodic Monitoring Report (PMR) on the Status of Management Implementation Plans (MIPs) in Response to Board-Endorsed Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) Recommendations assesses the progress made over the last year on actions contained in two “new” MIPs arising from recent IEO evaluations, and another seven for which individual management actions were classified as “open” in the Eighth PMR. Overall, 42 of the 96 actions included in the Ninth PMR remain open, representing roughly the same proportion as the previous PMR. A 25 percent net increase in open management actions over the past year is accounted for by 24 new actions from two MIPs, and 16 actions that have been implemented over the period. There is positive traction on the last four MIPs, but older actions appear challenging to implement. Better progress has been made with the implementation of the actions contained in recent MIPs. Fourteen of the actions implemented since the Eighth PMR relate to MIPs approved after October 2015, while only two actions (out of 24) from earlier MIPs were implemented. Improvements in the follow-up process approved by the Board in October 2015 have contributed to speedier implementation of recent actions, but some challenges remain. There are lingering challenges with defining measures of success for numerous actions, but accountabilities are now clearer and many actions are at advanced stages at the time of the Board’s discussion of the MIPs. This PMR introduces indicators to support the process for resolving challenges with long-standing actions. Despite the slower progress with the older actions, significant advances have been made over the past year in several key areas. These include: protocols for engaging the IEO; risk management and analysis; the mainstreaming of macrofinancial surveillance; an overarching strategy on data and statistics; guidance on cooperation with other organizations, including Regional Financing Arrangements (RFAs); improvements in External Stability Assessments; and ongoing analytical work on surveillance and program, including macrostructural issues, emerging topics, and debt sustainability analysis. On the other hand, progress has been slower on macro forecasting, outward spillovers, and cross-country knowledge sharing."

The twelfth Annual Report of the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) describes activities during financial year 2015 (May 1, 2014–April 30, 2015). During the financial year, the IEO completed an evaluation of the IMF response to the global financial and economic crisis. It also issued two reports updating three past evaluations: The IMF’s Approach to Capital Account Liberalization: Revisiting the 2005 IEO Evaluation; and Revisiting the IEO Evaluations of the IMF’s Role in Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) and the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) (2004) and the IEO Evaluation of IMF and Aid to Sub-Saharan Africa (2007). In addition, the Executive Board discussed the IEO evaluation of Recurring Issues from a Decade of Evaluation: Lessons for the IMF, which was issued to the Board in FY2014. The paper reports on the IEO budget and outreach efforts in the financial year. This paper also summarizes the evaluations on Recurring Issues and the IMF Response to the Financial and Economic Crisis, the Board discussions of these evaluations, and the two updates of past evaluations. It also discusses follow-up on IEO evaluations and addresses ongoing evaluations and the IEO work program going forward. A table lists the IEO evaluations and evaluation updates completed or in progress.

This paper analyzes that the IMF has moved beyond its traditional fiscal-centric approach to recognize that social protection can also be macro-critical for broader reasons including social and political stability concerns. Evaluating the IMF’s involvement in social protection is complicated by the fact that there is no standard definition of social protection or of broader/overlapping terms such as social spending and social safeguards in (or outside) the IMF. In this evaluation, social protection is understood to include policies that provide benefits to vulnerable individuals or households. This evaluation found widespread IMF involvement in social protection across countries although the extent of engagement varied. In some cases, engagement was relatively deep, spanning different activities (bilateral surveillance, technical assistance, and/or programs) and involving detailed analysis of distributional impacts, discussion of policy options, active advocacy of social protection, and integration of social protection measures in program design and/or conditionality. This cross-country variation to some degree reflected an appropriate response to country-specific factors, in particular an assessment of whether social protection policy was macrocritical, and the availability of expertise from development partners or in the country itself.

This IMF catalog provides the newest information on the key publications. Each publication underpins IMF strategic positions and policy by disseminating global and regional surveillance products and analysis, and by expanding country-level outreach. With this objective in mind, the IMF publishes a wide variety of books, periodicals, and electronic products covering global economics, international finance, monetary issues, statistics, exchange rates, and other global economic issues. IMF’s print and digital publications also present the analysis, research, policy advice, and data on economic and financial sector issues at the global, regional, and country level. The West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) has a long and varied history, and this Building Integrated Economies in West Africa: Lessons in Managing Growth, Inclusiveness, and Volatility book examines how the WAEMU can achieve its development and stability objectives, improve the livelihood of its people, and enhance the inclusiveness of its economic growth, all while preserving its financial stability, enhancing its competitiveness, and maintaining its current fixed exchange rates.

Monitoring Report (PMR) on the Status of Management Implementation Plans (MIPs) in Response to Board-Endorsed IEO Recommendations assesses the progress made over the last year on actions contained in the four MIPs arising from recent IEO evaluations, and another four for which individual management actions were classified as still “in progress” in the Seventh PMR. Overall, 34 of the 77 actions included in the eight MIPs covered in this PMR remain open. Progress on the actions envisaged in the management implementation plans has been somewhat uneven, with more progress being made on the most recent MIPs. Of the 19 actions that have been implemented over the past year, only three relate to the older management actions. Many of the older actions are more broadly worded, and in many instances have no clear timetable. The actions that are progressing more slowly also tend to involve fundamental changes to institutional culture and practices, and therefore require a continuous, long-term effort. In spite of the slower progress on the older actions, significant advances have been made in several key areas. These include: Fund-wide risk analysis and management; the mainstreaming of macro financial surveillance; training on financial sector topics and macro forecasting; acknowledgement, discussion, and dissemination of information on IMF forecasts; the shift towards increasing reliance on quota resources, relative to borrowing; and the approval of the new Statement of Principles and Best Practices in Self-Evaluation. In addition, the 2015 Staff Survey showed significant improvements in several indicators related to the Fund’s internal culture and institutional values. Overall, management and staff appear committed to ensuring that open actions remain on track. Progress on all open actions will be assessed in future PMRs.