IMF Announces New Online PFM Course

The Fiscal Affairs Department and the Institute for Capacity Development of the IMF are pleased to announce the launch of the online course¹ on Public Financial Management.

Target Audience: All government officials, including from development agencies, are welcome to register². The course is particularly relevant for mid- to senior-level officials in ministries of finance, treasuries, debt management offices, ministries of economy, or financial planning divisions in line ministries. It is also targeted at officials involved in capacity strengthening functions related to public financial management (PFM). The training is designed for participants who have already a basic understanding of PFM systems and builds on that knowledge at an intermediate level. 

Requirements and Qualifications: Basic understanding of PFM systems would be helpful. Access to a computer with a reliable Internet connection with Google Chrome web browser is essential. 

Course Description: This online course, presented by the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department, provides an overview of PFM systems, institutions, and capacity building in developing and emerging market economies. It focuses on PFM issues based on the IMF’s operational and analytical perspectives, in support of macroeconomic stability, economic growth, and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The training covers a wide range of topics, and treats PFM as an integrated system rather than a collection of specialties. As such, it focuses on PFM priorities, reform objectives and implementation risks. The course is built on conceptual and practical approaches, and includes testimonies from ministers of finance, practitioners, and other stakeholders from many countries. 

Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, participants should be able to:

• Understand why PFM is an important tool to implement public policies.
• Describe and analyze the budget cycle, and its main components.
• Identify the linkages between the components of PFM systems and improved economic and fiscal performance.
• Evaluate a simple medium-term budget framework, a cash management plan, and a public investment management reform strategy.
• Recognize tools for effective management of fiscal risks, components of fiscal transparency, reliable fiscal reports, and internal and external audits.
• Identify issues relevant to theprioritization and sequencing of PFM reforms, and the challenges faced in implementing such reforms.
• Understand the role of local conditions and political institutions in designing and implementing reforms.

 Apply by October 16, 2017.

We are looking forward to your participation in the course.

This course has benefited from the generous support of USAID.

¹Participation in all IMF online courses is free of charge, and there are no limits on the number of participants per country or agency. Please use this link to register for any course. For the full catalog of 2017 online courses, please click here.

²At this stage the course will be open to government officials and donor agencies. The course will be open to the public in a later offering planned for March/April 2018.