Botswana migrates to the Commonwealth Meridian

As part of efforts to ensure completeness, accuracy and consistency of debt databases in the region, MEFMI jointly with the Commonwealth Secretariat supported the Government of Botswana in migrating its debt database from the Commonwealth Debt Recording and Management System, (CS-DRMS) to the new Commonwealth Meridian, (CS-Meridian).

This was implemented during an in-country workshop in Gaborone, Botswana from 14 to 23 June 2023. Botswana becomes the 7^th of the eight-member countries using the commonwealth secretariat developed debt management information systems to migrate to CS-Meridian.

Governments require comprehensive, reliable and up-to-date public debt databases to produce statistics for debt management policy and strategy formulation, economic analysis, credit assessments and regional integration processes. The availability of up-to-date and accurate debt statistics is pivotal for enhancing transparency and accountability in the use of borrowed funds.

The workshop comprised migration of the installation and implementation of CS-Meridian as well as the migration of the debt data. In addition, there was also hands-on training for country officials focusing on the use of the various modules of the CS-Meridian, accompanied by practical exercises. The IT officials were also equipped with the requisite skills to provide support on the system. The participants were also guided to undertake data reconciliation, validation, and upload of debt securities.

The workshop was facilitated by Mr Vikas Pandey of the Commonwealth Secretariat and Mr Themba Dlamini, a MEFMI Graduate Fellow from the Central Bank of Eswatini, who represented the Institute in the workshop.

Prepared by Josephine Tito