Reforming the IMF for the 21st Century

Reforming the IMF for the 21st Century

Based on a conference held in September 2005 on the future of the International Monetary Fund, this important new book includes an overview of the challenges facing the IMF today. In addition, the authors offer a wide range of views on four areas: the international monetary system and the IMF (with an emphasis on enforcing and reforming the rules), governance (including representation), financial resources (the need for additional resources and how they should be supplied), and financing (including the role of IMF financing and the need for new facilities).
  • Cover
  • Contents
  • Preface
  • Acknowledgments
  • Chapter 1 Introduction and Summary
    • The IMF and the International Monetary System
    • Governance of the IMF
    • IMF Lending Facilities
    • IMF Financial Resources
    • References
  • Chapter 2 Overview on IMF Reform
    • IMF Activities and Reform Efforts
    • The IMF's Role in the International Monetary System
    • Governance
    • Lending Facilities
    • Financial Resources
    • Concluding Remarks
    • References
  • Chapter 3 The IMF View on IMF Reform
  • Chapter 4 The IMF: Back to Basics
    • Quota and Representation Reform
    • Exchange Rate Surveillance
    • Public Debt Sustainability
    • Crisis Resolution
    • Low-Income Countries
    • Conclusion
  • I THE IMF AND THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY SYSTEM
    • Chapter 5 Currency Manipulation and Enforcing the Rules of the International Monetary System
      • Discouraging Beggar-Thy-Neighbor Exchange Rate Policies
      • Fallacies about Currency Manipulation
      • Enforcing the Rules: The IMF as an Umpire for the Exchange Rate System
      • A Modest Proposal for Discouraging Currency Manipulation
      • References
    • Chapter 6 Revamping the International Monetary System
      • Reference Rates
      • Selecting the Reference Rates
      • Uses of Reference Rates
      • Another Potential Fund Role
      • Concluding Remarks
      • References
    • Chapter 7 Regional Arrangements and the International Monetary Fund
      • Regional Monetary and Financial Arrangements
      • Membership
      • Surveillance
      • Principles for Regional Facilities
      • Objections and Responses
      • Conclusions
      • References
    • Chapter 8 The IMF and the Capital Account
      • The Capital Account and Articles of Agreement
      • Evolution of the IMF's Approach to the Capital Account
      • Conclusions and Recommendations
      • References
  • II GOVERNANCE OF THE IMF
    • Chapter 9 Rearranging IMF Chairs and Shares: The Sine Qua Non of IMF Reform
      • Chairs--Representation on the IMF Executive Board
      • Shares--Voting Power
      • Conclusion
      • References
    • Chapter 10 IMF Governance and the Political Economy of a Consolidated European Seat
      • Measuring Voting Power
      • Voting Power in the IMF
      • Toward a Single EU-Euro Area Seat
      • Conclusions
      • References
      • Appendix 10A
    • Chapter 11 Internal Governance and IMF Performance
      • Limiting the Power of Large Shareholders
      • Management and Staff: Qualifications and Capacity
      • Legitimacy and Effectiveness at the IMF
      • References
    • Chapter 12 A Latin American View of IMF Governance
      • Governance Issues on Trade and Financial Regulation
      • IMF Governance and Performance
      • Concluding Remarks
    • Chapter 13 A New Steering Committee for the World Economy?
      • The Basic Problem
      • The (Il)legitimacy of the G-7
      • The Reform Options
      • Evolution or Big Bang?
      • What Difference Would It Make?
  • III IMF LENDING FACILITIES
    • Chapter 14 The Case for a Lender-of-Last-Resort Role for the IMF
      • LLR Lending and Repayment
      • LLR Results
      • The Resources Issue
      • The Global Environment in the 1990s Versus Today
      • The Impact of Argentina
      • The Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism
      • Collective Action Clauses, Codes, and Private-Sector Involvement
      • Principles for Future Policy
      • References
    • Chapter 15 The Case Against the IMF as a Lender of Final Resort
      • Compromise or Compromised?
      • Assessing the Case for Large-Scale IMF Lending
      • Policy Conclusions
      • References
    • Chapter 16 A Stability and Social Investment Facility for High-Debt Countries
      • Debt Burden in a Group of Emerging-Market Economies
      • A Bretton Woods Stability and Social Investment Facility for Highly Indebted Emerging-Market Economies
      • References
    • Chapter 17 The Case for an IMF Insurance Facility
      • Available Insurance Options
      • A New Country Insurance Facility
      • Final Remarks
      • References
    • Chapter 18 A Shock-Smoothing Facility for the IMF
      • Structure of the SSF
      • Impact of the SSF on Borrowing Countries and on the IMF
      • Questions about the SSF
      • Final Thoughts
      • References
    • Chapter 19 The Policy Support Instrument: A Key Component of the Recent IMF Reform Movement
      • Advantages of a Nonborrowing Program
      • Concerns about Nonborrowing Programs
      • The PSI as Part of a Broader IMF Reform Movement
      • International Cooperation in Implementing and Internalizing the Reforms
    • Chapter 20 IMF Facilities for Poststabilization Low-Income Countries
      • All Low-Income Countries Are Not Alike
      • IMF Facilities in Mature Poststabilization Countries
      • Increasing Flexibility in PRGF and PSI Programs
      • Should the IMF Provide Grants?
      • Conclusions
      • References
    • Chapter 21 Reflections on the Function and Facilities for IMF Lending
      • The Purpose of IMF General Resources Lending
      • The Flexible Stand-By Arrangement and Other Fund Facilities
      • Concessional Lending Facilities
      • Conclusion
      • References
  • IV IMF FINANCIAL RESOURCES
    • Chapter 22 Does the IMF Need More Financial Resources?
      • Conditionality
      • The Hardening of Conditionality
      • Conclusions
      • References
    • Chapter 23 How Should IMF Resources Be Expanded?
      • Sources of the IMF's Resources
      • The IMF's Lending Operations and Interest Charges
      • The Cost of Subsidized IMF Lending
      • Private-Sector Borrowing
      • Gold Sales
      • Streamlining the IMF
      • References
    • Chapter 24 Is the SDR a Monetary Dodo? This Bird May Still Fly
      • Still Alive and Kicking
      • A Looming Dollar Crisis?
      • Does the SDR Have a Role in a Meltdown Scenario?
      • Conclusion
      • References
  • V MOVING FORWARD
    • Chapter 25 The IMF Adrift on a Sea of Liquidity
      • References
    • Chapter 26 IMF Reform: Attaining the Critical Mass
      • A Simplified Characterization--The Global "Stable Disequilibrium"
      • The IMF's Role--Actual and Desirable
      • Specifying the Deliverables
      • Some Operational Aspects
      • Concluding Remarks
      • References
    • Chapter 27 The IMF in Perspective
    • Chapter 28 IMF Reform: A Chinese View
    • Chapter 29 An IMF Reform Package
      • Substantial Progress on IMF Governance
      • Policies of Systemically Important Members
      • Central Role of the Fund in External Financial Crises
      • Refocused Engagement with Low-Income Members
      • Attention to the Capital Account and the Financial Sector
      • Additional Financial Resources
      • Final Comments
      • References
  • About the Contributors
  • Index