ECCB 2014-2015 Annual Report and Statement of Accounts

EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK

The Bank will continue to work towards adjusting the surveillance system to meet new demands brought on by a changing economic landscape. This will involve strengthening the human capacity in the requisite Units, both at the Bank and in member countries, through upgrading their diagnostic and forecasting skill sets and also formalising the institutional arrangements across the currency union.

In addition, the Bank assisted Grenada in developing its “Home Grown Adjustment Programme” which facilitated the signing of the Extended Credit Facility arrangement with the IMF on 26 June 2014. The Bank remains engaged in this process and is represented on the National Monitoring Committee, and has participated in the official reviews conducted by the IMF. The Bank also participated in the IMF’s staff visits and Article IV consultations to Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Lucia. The missions to St Kitts and Nevis mainly involved the completion of the final set of reviews for the 36-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) which was approved on 27 July 2011, while the one to Antigua and Barbuda focused on the Post Programme Monitoring discussions. In collaboration with the World Bank, the Bank also participated in the OECS Regional Partnership Strategy (RPS) consultations which were held in three member countries; the Commonwealth of Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda and Grenada over the period 29 to 31 January 2014, as well as, the Caribbean Growth Forum First Accountability Workshops held in St Vincent and the Grenadines and Saint Lucia. Other notable accomplishments included; participation in the Center for Latin American Monetary Studies (CEMLA) missions to Grenada and Saint Lucia, where the main objectives were the assessment of debt sustainability issues and the development of a comprehensive debt relief strategy. Further technical assistance was provided to all member countries through various networking meetings, seminars and conferences.

I nformation S torage and D issemination Statistics

The core deliverables of the Statistics Department are (i) Debt Management Advice and Capacity Building; (ii) Banking and Balance of Payments Statistics based on international standards; and (iii) Facilitation of effective and efficient statistical systems. Debt Management Advice and Capacity Building Through continued funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD) Canada, the Bank was able to extend its support to member countries in the area of debt management through the Canada-Eastern Caribbean Debt Management Advisory Service (CANEC-DMAS) Project. The CANEC-DMAS Project was originally scheduled to conclude in October 2014 but the DFATD approved an extension of the project to June 2017. Training and technical assistance were provided to member countries to build capacity in some of the core areas of debt management such as: Debt Sustainability Analyses (DSA); formulation of Medium Term Debt

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ECCB ANNUAL REPORT 2014/2015