AFRITAC East's agenda for 2004 stresses improving fiscal and customs administration

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Page 57

From the outset, AFRITAC East has emphasized country involvement in the development of its work programs, and the six countries served by the center have a strong voice in the semiannual steering committee meetings. As John Crotty, who served as the center's first coordinator, explained, "the governance structure of AFRITAC East was designed to ensure that countries themselves effectively drive the process."

Commenting on his impressions of the meeting in Kigali, Bassirou Sarr, the incoming coordinator for AFRITAC East, said that he "was impressed by the frankness and the quality of the discussions." The networking and sharing of successful experiences among peers during these meetings can also provide a powerful impetus for reforms. As one example, Sarr pointed out that Tanzania's success in carrying out tax reform has spurred other countries in the region to look at a more centralized tax administration model that can increase revenue collection.

Building on 2003 priorities

Since most capacity-building efforts, by their very nature, have multiyear time horizons, AFRITAC East's work plan for the coming year largely continues and builds on activities begun in 2003. When it met in January, the steering committee reviewed the work plan to ensure that the proposed capacity-building activities continued to be fully consistent with the priorities stated in countries' Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs). These activities can be grouped into five broad categories:

What is AFRITAC?

As part of the Africa Capacity Building Initiative-which aims to increase the volume, range, and coordination of assistance from various multilateral and bilateral providers-the IMF opened two African Technical Assistance Centers (or AFRITACs) in 2002-03. AFRITAC East, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, serves Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. AFRITAC West, its counterpart based in Bamako, Mali, serves Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. Focusing on the IMF's core areas of expertise, the AFRITAC initiative aims to strengthen the capacity of African countries to design and implement their poverty-reducing strategies and to improve the coordination of technical assistance relevant to the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) process.

The IMF has made use of this regional approach to delivering technical assistance to its member countries since 1993, when it opened the Pacific Financial Technical Assistance Center (PFTAC) in Fiji. All of these regional centers are guided by steering committees with representatives of participating countries and supporting donor agencies, as well as observers from regional institutions involved in capacity building. Each country appoints a representative and an alternate to the committee, and both members often attend its semiannual meetings, which are chaired by a country representative (currently the Governor of the Bank of Tanzania) and hosted by the participating countries on a rotating basis. Center coordinators have responsibility for day-to-day management.

At each of the centers, a small number of resident advisors deliver technical assistance and training throughout the subregion, typically supplemented by short-term specialists. The benefits of this regional center approach include flexibility to respond rapidly as the need arises; ability to field frequent and consistent follow-up visits, which keep up the momentum of reforms and solidify relationships; and continued access to high-quality...