IMF | STI

Details

Start: 
March 29, 2027

End:
April 2, 2027

Course Number:
ST27.10

Application Deadline

December 4, 2026

BRIDGE Workshop - Building Readiness for IMF Dialogue and Engagement: Legal and Institutional Elements (LAIF)

Target Audience

Mid- to senior-level officials from member country central banks, ministries of finance, and equivalent institutions in the Asia-Pacific region, who engage, or expect to engage, with the IMF (and other IFIs) as part of their work. Both legal and nonlegal professionals are welcome.

Qualifications

The BRIDGE workshop will be particularly valuable for (legal and non-legal) officials who currently engage or expect to engage with the IMF in their work. Ahead of the workshop, all participants are expected to complete the MOOC (IMFx: IMF Legal Framework: An Introduction, Link) which is a pre-requisite for participants to fully benefit from the workshop. Preference will be given to participants who have completed the pre-requisite MOOC course at the time of application.

Course Description

The BRIDGE workshop will bring together officials from the region to share perspectives and practical tools to support their member countries' effective engagement with the IMF. Presented by the IMF Legal Department, BRIDGE offers a unique opportunity for officials to deepen their practical understanding of the IMF's legal and institutional frameworks, including how these frameworks shape their country engagement with the IMF through Article IV consultations, IMF lending operations, and capacity development. Participants will gain insights into the IMF's decision-making processes and its approach to key cross-cutting issues such as sovereign debt, foreign exchange systems, capital flows, trade, sanctions and emerging areas such as fintech. Through this exposure, participants will develop a clearer understanding of IMF institutional views, enabling more informed dialogue with IMF staff and a potentially more impactful role in the design of their countries' economic policies in response to IMF advice. BRIDGE is also a forum for participants to share their own views on the IMF's work as well as their countries' engagement with the institution. Delivered over five days in an engaging, in-person format, BRIDGE will offer learning through real-world simulations. Case studies, scenario- based learning, interactive dialogue, small-group discussions and role-play exercises will allow participants to experience the dynamics of IMF-country engagement and the legal, policy, and institutional considerations that underpin it.

Course Objectives

Upon taking this course, participants are expected to:

• Gain up-to-date knowledge of legal aspects of the IMF's lending and surveillance frameworks, financing model, and sovereign debt policies and the design of these frameworks to assist member countries, particularly in response to high global uncertainty.
• Understand the role of the IMF in the broader global context, and the interaction among the IMF, other international organizations and IMF member countries.
• Assess how the topics presented and discussed during the course can be used in their daily work