The IMF’s Cooperation with
ASEAN in Statistics
Regional Workshop on Strategic Statistical Planning:
Towards a Stronger ASEAN Community Statistical System
ASEAN Secretariat
Jakarta, Indonesia
(November 28–29, 2012)
He Qi
Advisor
IMF Statistics Department
The views expressed herein are those of the author and should not necessarily be attributed to the IMF,
its Executive Board, or its management
Main Messages
 The growing importance of Asia in the global economy
and the promise of economic cooperation—as noted
by the IMF’s Managing Director in her speech in Kuala
Lumpur on November 14.
 Statistical development plays a critical role in
supporting the economic development at the national,
regional, and global level.
 Coordination and cooperation in statistics help
facilitate statistical development as evidenced in the
success of many projects in the region.
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The IMF’s Past and Ongoing Cooperation with ASEAN
and Its Member States
 The IMF’s capacity building program in the region is
carried out mainly by providing technical assistance
missions and conducting joint seminars/workshops
with ASEANstats.
 Currently the IMF has four capacity building projects
benefitting Asian countries funded by the government
of Japan in the areas of external sector statistics,
government finance statistics, national accounts, and
the General Data Dissemination System (GDDS), in
which many ASEAN member states are participating.
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Joint Seminars and Workshops
 Inception Workshop on the Establishment of an ASEAN
Forum on the SNA, jointly organized with the ASEAN
Secretariat for ASEAN member states (Bangkok, 2007).
 Workshop on the Coordinated Direct Investment
Survey, attended by ASEANstats staff and ASEAN
member states (Bangkok, 2011).
 Regional Seminar on Enhancing Monitoring Capacity
and Capital Flows, coordinated with Dr. Rillo, the
Director in charge of ASEANstats, who served as a
session chair and facilitated the participation of ASEAN
member states (Tokyo, 2012).
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Four Capacity Building Projects Funded by the
Government of Japan (1)
I. Project on implementing the SNA and the International
Comparison Program (ICP).
Objective: Improve the accuracy of price statistics and
national accounts estimates.
Participating Countries: Selected countries in Asia and the
Pacific (from ASEAN: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Lao P.D.R., Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand,
and Vietnam).
Mode of Delivery: TA missions and training workshops.
Duration: Three years (2011- end 2013).
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Four Capacity Building Projects Funded by the
Government of Japan (2)
II. Project on Improving Government Finance Statistics
(GFS) in Asia and the Pacific.
Objective: Improve countries’ capacity for compiling GFS
according to the framework of the Government Finance
Statistics Manual 2011 (GFSM 2011).
Participating Countries: Selected countries in Asia and the
Pacific (from ASEAN: Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam).
Mode of Delivery: TA missions and training workshops.
Duration: Three years (2012-2015).
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Four Capacity Building Projects Funded by the
Government of Japan (3)
III. Project for Improving External Sector Statistics in Asia
and the Pacific.
Objective: Improve external sector statistics with regard
to availability, accuracy, comparability, and timeliness,1/
following the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments
and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6).
Participating Countries: Selected countries in Asia and
the Pacific (from ASEAN: Cambodia, Lao P.D.R.,
Myanmar, and Vietnam).
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Four Capacity Building Projects Funded by
the Government of Japan (3)—Cont’d
Mode of Delivery: TA missions and training workshops.
Duration: Three years (2012-2015).
1/ Main
datasets covered under the project include balance of
payments, International Investment Position, Coordinated
Direct Investment Survey, Coordinated Portfolio Investment
Survey, and external debt statistics.
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Four Capacity Building Projects Funded by
the Government of Japan (4)
IV. Project on Increasing the Participation of the IMF’s
General Data Dissemination System for Selected Countries
in Asia and the Pacific, Middle East, and Central Asia
Objective: Help countries strengthen the development of
macroeconomic data and metadata to be posted on the GDDS
website.
Participating Countries: Selected countries in Asia and the
Pacific, Middle East, and Central Asia (from ASEAN: Lao P.D.R.
and Myanmar).
Mode of Delivery: TA missions and training workshops.
Duration: One and a half years (2011-2013).
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Main Areas for Further Cooperation to
Support ASEAN’s Strategic Statistical Plan
 Continue to cooperate with ASEANstats and member
states in the following main areas:
 Implementing the 2008 SNA and BPM6 to further
progress in the harmonization of ASEAN statistics.
 Promoting the participation/implementation of the
four projects for selected ASEAN member states to
enhance the national statistical system.
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Thank you!
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