(Archived Content)
Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from a number of economies from around the world met in Washington on October 5 to review progress made to date in efforts to strengthen the international financial system. 1
The Ministers and Governors welcomed the opportunity to gather once again on an informal basis to discuss key issues facing the global economy. They regarded discussions among a diverse group of countries with varied experience as valuable to increasing understanding and helping develop consensus about issues of mutual concern.
Ministers and Governors discussed the current crisis and its implications for the global financial system. They underscored the need for ongoing, urgent efforts to address the difficulties faced by a number of economies and to stem further contagion. They called for a particular focus on support for the vulnerable groups in society and for ways to address more forcefully financial and corporate restructuring. They recognized that intensive work was underway on these matters in individual countries and appropriate international financial institutions. In this regard, Ministers and Governors strongly emphasized that sound domestic policies are fundamental to healthy robust national economies and financial sectors and, increasingly, to the prospects for other countries and the world economy as a whole.
Ministers and Governors welcomed the reports of the three working groups established in April and thanked the co-chairs of these groups, as well as their participants, for their work. They praised the efforts undertaken to consolidate views on a broad range of subjects -- increasing transparency and accountability, strengthening national financial systems, and resolving international financial crises. Ministers and Governors called on the IMF, World Bank, BIS, OECD and other relevant organizations to consider for implementation the recommendations of the working groups as these organizations endeavor to take steps to strengthen the international financial architecture.
In view of the ongoing need to strengthen the international financial architecture, Ministers and Governors agreed to give further attention to a number of additional issues which they believe to be of great importance. These issues include: promoting soundly based capital flows; further improvements in transparency and disclosure; strengthening financial systems, including ways to motivate countries to adopt and enforce international standards; maintaining sustainable exchange rate regimes backed by consistent macroeconomic policies; and developing new ways to prevent and respond to crises, including appropriate participation by the private sector.
Ministers and Governors agreed to work together in appropriate fora, such as the IMF Interim Committee, on an expanded review of the international architecture, through a cooperative and consultative process. This would include external input, particularly from the private sector, in a number of key areas.