Accountability

IMF’s “trusted advisor” role to be scrutinised

21 November 2011

The IMF’s Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) released an issues paper describing how it will assess whether the IMF has strengthened its “trusted advisor” role since 2005. It will look at how perceptions of the Fund as an advisor have been affected by new IMF surveillance and advisory initiatives introduced after the global economic crisis. It notes that previous IEO reports have found that countries are often wary of the IMF’s advice, citing “inadequate knowledge of country-specific circumstances” and “a perceived lack of evenhandedness” as explanatory factors. The paper will focus on perceptions of IMF advice, but “not, however, assess the actual impact of this advice.”