THE ARAB MONETARY FUND, IN COOPERATION WITH THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND’S CENTER FOR ECONOMICS AND FINANCE IN THE MIDDLE EAST, ORGANIZES A COURSE ON “PUBLIC FINANCIAL FRAMEWORKS”

Ladies and gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the opening of a course on " public financial frameworks " organized by the Institute for Training and Capacity Building at the Arab Monetary Fund in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund's Center for Economics and Finance in the Middle East, hoping that it will achieve the desired goals of deepening your knowledge in this important subject .

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

Government finances and fiscal policy play an important role in achieving macroeconomic stability and sustainable long-term growth in general, and in Arab economies in particular. On the one hand, this is due to the importance of the public sector in our Arab economies and to the nature of non-tax revenues, especially oil revenues, which flow into the state treasury and constitute an important part of its budget. In this context, there is an urgent need to adopt prudent policies to deal with developments, thus reducing dependence on oil revenues and reforming tax policy by developing and activating tax systems, raising their efficiency and fairness, as well as diversifying sources of income through the development of other productive sectors, especially in the Arab oil-exporting countries. .

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

The role of government finance in the overall economy goes beyond fiscal policy to include matters relating to public debt, tax reform, spending, and public sector companies. It is no secret to you that high spending rates compared to limited and fluctuating revenues may lead to high levels of public debt. This not only calls for the need to adopt a sound public debt management policy in order to reduce its burdens and keep it within reasonable limits, but also requires reforming the tax system to increase its revenues and raise its efficiency and fairness. It should also work to adopt a policy to reform the growing expenditures such as the pension system and government health care, in addition to the urgent need for high quality information with a high level of transparency and accountability.

To achieve these goals, it is necessary to develop a general framework for fiscal policy that includes the methods and tools that governments must use in order to ensure the sustainability of fiscal policy, by not increasing public debt burdens on the one hand, and on the other hand not affecting spending that may lead to Failure to achieve the desired economic growth.

 

The course focuses on the following main themes:

• The role of public financial institutions.
  
• Continuity of debt sustainability.
  
• Calculation and evaluation of the public finance position.
  
• The importance of the general framework of fiscal policy and the advantages of establishing public finance rules and councils.
  
• Transparency and disclosure and their importance in achieving fiscal policy objectives.
  
• Financial risk management and disclosure.
  

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

In conclusion, I would like to extend my thanks and gratitude to the distinguished experts who participated in presenting the course materials, and I would also like to commend the constructive and fruitful cooperation with the International Monetary Fund Center for Economics and Finance in the Middle East, hoping and looking forward to the continuity of cooperation.

In the end, I wish you a successful session and may God protect you wherever you are.

 

Peace, mercy and blessings of God.