COMESA Monetary Institute (CMI)
The Monetary Institute held a validation workshop on the implementation of the COMESA Multilateral Fiscal Surveillance Framework. The workshop, held from 27-31 August 2012 in the Kenya School of Monetary Studies in Nairobi, was attended by 12 Member States, the African Development Bank and the East African Community.
The workshop discussed and validated the policy gguidelines for the MFSF; the legal framework; the institutions of the MFSF; and the pillars of the MFSF. The pillars include the harmonisation of macro-economic data for reporting and peer review, convergence programmes and structural adjustments, fiscal surveillance and trade integration; and the COSWAP facility.
It was agreed that the MFSF is a critical factor in enhancing intra-regional trade by lowering transaction costs, increasing transparency in prices of goods and services, and thereby facilitating appropriate investment decisions. The workshop came up with short, medium and long term action plans for the implementation of the framework.
