Aninat stresses Africa's need for capacity building
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Page 185
IMF Deputy Managing Director Eduardo Aninat leaves the IMF on July 1 to return to Chile, where he was Finance Minister from 1994-1999. Aninat joined the IMF's four-member management team in December 1999, with broad responsibilities in running the IMF- including overseeing the launching of a major technical assistance initiative in Africa. He talks with Laura Wallace about the late May opening of the West Africa Regional Technical Assistance Center (West AFRITAC) in Mali (see article below), seven months after the opening of a similar center in East Africa.
IMF SURVEY: Why is capacity building so critical?
ANINAT: In the IMF's long engagement in Africa, the sustainability of institutions has been a crucial factor in explaining differences in growth rates and the quality of growth across countries.We have seen time and again the need for strengthening central banks, treasuries, finance ministries, and other institutions-such as the legislative and the judicial branches-to enhance transparency, ownership, the continuity of policies, and the rule of law. Experience has shown that even the best designed and the most realistic set of reform measures can be poorly implemented or monitored for lack of capacity.
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IMF SURVEY: Why do you feel that this particular initiative will be effective, given the troubled history of technical assistance in Africa?
ANINAT: Three reasons. First, we will have our people located in the field in a sort of hub-and-spoke mechanism.
This will enable us to build a partnership with the beneficiary countries and the donors that sit on the steering committees of the centers, and it will allow us to respond to countries' technical assistance needs in a much more flexible, timely, and realistic way. Second, the initiative complements the technical assistance being delivered from headquarters, helping us to better tailor our overall technical assistance.
Third, it responds to urgent calls from African leaders-a call that was reiterated when the African leaders launched their New Partnership for Africa Development [NEPAD] initiative.
IMF SURVEY: You've indicated that if the operations of the two centers are successful, additional centers- possibly one to three more-could be opened.What criteria will be used to assess success, and have all the partners agreed on these criteria?
ANINAT: The criteria have been thoroughly discussed with both the African leaders and...
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