IMF team sets Phl visit

MANILA, Philippines - A team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is scheduled to conduct its annual evaluation of the country’s economy starting next week, the organization’s representative to the Philippines said.

“The Article IV mission is tentatively planned from January 10th to 23rd,” IMF resident representative Shanaka Jayanath Peiris told The STAR in an e-mail.

According to the IMF website, Article IV consultations are annually undertaken by member-countries and involve visitation by a staff team that “collects economic and financial information, and discusses with officials the country’s economic developments and policies.”

Data collated then serve as basis for a staff report of the country that is released months after. The report also “forms the basis for discussion by the Executive Board” of the IMF, the organization’s policy-making body.

Department of Finance assistant secretary Ma. Teresa Habitan said the recommendations would also be provided by the IMF after discussions with key officials from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the government’s economic cluster led by the DOF.

Details of the latest Article IV discussions remained unavailable as of press time.

Though the Philippines is no longer required to adopt all IMF recommendations, Habitan said Article IV consultations serve as a “venue where we can seek technical advice for the more technical aspects of our work.”

She cited the ongoing technical assistance extended by the IMF to improve the government’s fiscal reporting and make it more up-to-date and accurate. Aside from this, studies were also conducted by the IMF on the Philippine excise tax system and fiscal incentives.

The Philippines, having paid all its IMF loans in 2005, just taps the organization for training and policy advice. For instance, IMF recommendations were considered in the crafting of the “sin” tax bill — which aimed to increase tobacco and liquor taxes — passed into law last month.

“These consultations allow us economic managers and technical staff to step back and take a long look at the kind of policies we are implementing. It’s a chance to more deeply scrutinize our policy fundamentals,” Habitan said in an e-mail.

“What we can take from these visits is an objective analysis and recommendations on how to further improve on our jobs,” she added.