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Need for Further Development of Public Debt Statistics

25 April 2005

Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Winston Cox has called for further development of public debt statistics in line with the surge in public domestic debt across different regions of the world.

Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Winston Cox speaking at the opening of the two-day meeting in Marlborough House, 25 April 2005.

He said this at the opening of a two-day meeting of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Finance Statistics at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, UK, from 25-26 April 2005.

Mr Cox stressed that while the production of external debt statistics is important for vulnerability analysis of economies, it is vital for national authorities to be more aware of issues in the management of domestic debt. It would be necessary to integrate external debt statistics with those on domestic debt to assess debt sustainability on the basis of total debt. He said this move will further strengthen the management information system used in designing appropriate strategies for public debt management.

The Deputy Secretary-General commended the efforts of international institutions for their contributions on standards for external debt statistics. This included the 'Guide for Compilers and Users on External Debt Statistics' produced by the International Monetary Fund, UN Conference on Trade and Development, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, World Bank, Bank for International Settlements, European Central Bank and the Paris Club, following a Task Force consultation in 2003.

He said the Task Force's comprehensive manual on compilation and reporting of external debt statistics based on best international practices, has become the main reference document for external debt compilers and users. It focuses on "the concepts, definitions, coverage and the sources and techniques involved in compilation and measurement of external debt statistics, and outlines the classifications and analytical uses for monitoring of external debt statistics."

Mr Cox pointed out that the economic and financial crises of the 1990s have amply demonstrated that inadequate statistics on external debts restrict a country's ability to address vulnerabilities arising from solvency and liquidity problems.

Click here for a hi-res picture of the delegates.

During their meeting in London, the 20 delegates of the Task Force will discuss topics including the measurement and treatment of external debt statistics such as derivatives, repurchase agreements and other financial assets. The implications of the update of the Balance of Payments Manual and the exceptional financing for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries will also be addressed.

The Deputy Secretary-General stated that: "The analytical and technological foundations are being laid for hosting comprehensive debtor and creditor debt data on the same platform to facilitate better comparison across data sources for different characteristics of debt data, notably for financial instruments, and the borrower, creditor and maturity pattern."

Mr Cox said the availability of reliable data will ensure that users of the Commonwealth Secretariat's Debt Recording and Management System (CS-DRMS) have accurate information, which is useful especially for the developing and emerging market economies.

Alfredo Leone, Chairman of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Finance Statistics and Senior Advisor of the IMF Statistics Department said that the Task Force, which includes the Commonwealth Secretariat, will continue to collaborate "to provide good advice and sound data statistics that would be relevant for policy-making to promote the growth and stability of states."