MEFMI LAUNCHES FINANCIAL PROGRAMMING AND POLICY FRAMEWORK FOR ZIMBABWE

On Friday, 26 August 2016, MEFMI launched the Financial Programming and Policy (FPP) Framework for Zimbabwe at Meikles Hotel in Harare.

The Framework was developed through a Technical Assistance (TA) project implemented by MEFMI upon request by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ). Work on the project was initiated in October 2014. The project was planned to span over a period of two (2) years, and was structured in five (5) face-to-face phases, of one week each. In addition, there has been on-line technical assistance provided in-between the face-to-face workshops. The training was delivered on a hands-on, and step-by-step basis using Zimbabwe data. This mode of delivery was critical in guaranteeing skills transfer and ownership of the project by the participants who were drawn from the relevant key institutions.

A team of twelve (12) officials from the RBZ, Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, and the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) was constituted as the Financial Programming Group (FPG) to receive the TA and establish the analytical tool. Dr. Anna Lennblad, a freelance expert from South Africa, has been facilitating the TA as the lead resource person. In the project, MEFMI has been working very closely with the USAID-Strategic Economic Research and Analysis (SERA) on funding, technical assistance, coordination and reporting.

An FPP framework is an accounting framework built around integration of the four macroeconomic accounts, namely the System of National Accounts (SNA), Balance of Payments (BOP), Government Finance Statistics (GFS), and Monetary and Financial Statistics (MFS). Existence of a financial program guarantees the availability of a consistent forecasting methodology across the four (4) macroeconomic accounts, which informs policy design, analysis and implementation.

The launch marked the end of the fourth phase, which has seen remarkable achievements by the FPG, some of which include completion of data entry of historical data for all the four accounts, substantial progress in elimination of inter-account data inconsistencies, and forecasting of a baseline scenario. The next step will be to use this Framework to construct a Flow of Funds Matrix and Alternative Forecasting Scenarios, and this will be done during the fifth phase in April 2017. In the meantime, online technical assistance will be provided to cover any data and policy issues identified up to this stage, which have influence on the framework.

The event was opened by the MEFMI Executive Director, Dr. Caleb M. Fundanga. Dr. Fundanga began by reaffirming MEFMI’s commitment to capacity building as the Institute prepares for Phase V (2017-2021). The Executive Director further went on to thank MEFMI’s collaborative partners and member institutions for the outstanding achievements of Phase IV, the FPP Framework included. He urged the members of the FPG to make use of the valuable hands-on practical skills that they have acquired to assist their colleagues, and to be of benefit to their individual institutions, to Zimbabwe and other countries in the MEFMI region.

The Programming Framework was officially launched by the Deputy Governor of the RBZ, Dr. Kupukile Mlambo. In his remarks, the Deputy Governor, representing the Governor, highlighted the importance of the Framework in enhancing macroeconomic management in Zimbabwe and stated the Central Bank’s continued commitment to improving the economic environment.

MEFMI Executive Committee members, including Mr. Charles Chuka, Governor of the Reserve Bank of Malawi, representatives – Mr. Peter Rotich, Central Bank of Kenya Director of Finance and Mr. Patrick Ocailap, Deputy Secretary to the Treasury, Ministry of Finance, Planning & Economic Development, Uganda also graced the occasion. Other guests included senior government officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, RBZ, ZIMSTAT, Zimbabwe Economic Policy Analysis and Research Unit (ZEPARU), as well as representatives from USAID, and other key capacity building institutions.

The Vote of Thanks was delivered by Dr. Daniel Ndlela, Chief of Party, USAID-SERA Program. In his speech, Dr. Ndlela congratulated the participants on the success achieved, and outlined the strength of the relationships among USAID-SER MEFMI and RBZ. On a slightly more sombre note, Dr. Ndlela announced that the USAID-SERA Program was coming to an end in September 2016. Nevertheless, he remained upbeat and confident that USAID would continue its capacity building efforts in Zimbabwe.