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From October 23 to November 3 2023, a workshop on debt data validation took place in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. This workshop is part of a larger project, financed jointly by the African Development Bank and the Government of Equatorial Guinea, on implementing DMFAS 6 at the Caja de Amortización de la Deuda Publica (CAADP), the debt management agency under the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
The workshop took place after finalizing the public debt database, which contains loans and bonds of the central Government, and after an extensive training programme on DMFAS functionalities during which over 50 debt officers of the CAADP learned how to use DMFAS 6 for debt recording and reporting.
It focused on the analysis of the main factors affecting data quality, such as the availability of data, information flows, quality control of received and registered data as well as on institutional cooperation. Multiple agencies were invited to the workshop to improve the coordination and facilitate the sharing of information between them. Thus, not only the information flows could be adequately analyzed, but also suggestions for future improvements could be retained. Nine institutions participated, including the 3 key directorates of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Treasury as well as regional institutions, national project implementation agencies, local partners and the Institute of Statistics.
Thirty representatives and analysts from these institutions participated actively in the workshop, which addressed the following topics:
- Data validation methodology, explaining the dimensions of completeness, accuracy and coherence as outlined in initiatives and documents on debt data quality validation issued by UNCTAD, the IMF and the World Bank.
- Elaboration and analysis of the information flows of debt operations, starting with the negotiation process and the issuance of securities, and moving on to the registration of loans and bonds, disbursements, debt service , and management of on-lent loans. The participants identified the different actors and their involvement in the processes, their respective actions and discussed how to identify drawbacks that potentially can affect the quality of the data in DMFAS.
- Evaluation of a list of proposed validation checks and elaboration of a validation calendar to be applied in Equatorial Guinea.
- Practical checklist exercises (validation questions and answers, and their compliance indicators).
- Elaboration of validation queries to generate validation reports in DMFAS.
As a result, a validation manual was produced containing a calendar and instructions on how to perform validation checks. Moreover, the participants learned about the methodology and the importance of performing validation checks, quality control and improved communication between the different institutions, and they created a list of key contacts in each institution involved in debt operations to facilitate the exchange of documents and information sharing.
A particular highlight of the workshop was the visit of the acting Minister Ms. Milagrosa Obono Angue, Delegate Minister of Treasury and State Heritage , who outlined the importance of having reliable debt data for public financial management. She congratulated the participants and distributed the workshop certificates.
After the workshop, an UNCTAD consultant continued to work with the staff from the Front-Middle and Back Office on the preparation of specific reports, including data validation reports using the DMFAS Query builder.
Moreover, UNCTAD also proposed to establish a quality control unit in the back office that would be in charge of executing periodic validation checks.
The project will continue in 2024 with the production of a debt statistical bulletin, debt portfolio analysis, management of contingent liabilities as well as a workshop on the mathematics and functioning of capital markets. The on-going work on debt office procedures will be finalized and the related documents (functions and procedures manual) will be reviewed and be approved.
