The first Joint Comsec and the World Bank regional workshop on Government Debt Management Performance Assessment (DEMPA) tool for Asia and South Pacific was held from 21st to 25th September 2009 at the Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel, Singapore. The Workshop aimed to provide an understanding of the rationale, scope, coverage and application of the DeMPA Tool, a global public good developed by the World Bank in consultation with other international and regional providers of technical assistance including the Commonwealth Secretariat to assist countries undertake evidence based comprehensive assessment of public debt management performance. The output of the assessment, which essentially is a snapshot of the strengths and weaknesses in government debt management, provides a firm basis for the government to design a reform plan to help improve public debt management.

The workshop was financed out of Debt Management Facility (DMF), a multi-donor trust fund, that provides grant-based technical assistance with a view to strengthen debt management capacity and institutions through the supply of knowledge tools and the delivery of technical assistance while facilitating knowledge sharing and enhancing coordination among different debt management providers. The workshop was attended by 25 senior government officials - Directors, General Managers, Departmental Heads, Advisers, Financial Analysts and Debt Managers - drawn from Ministries of Finance and Central Banks of 17 Low Income Countries from Asia and the South Pacific.

The workshop was facilitated by Ms Abha Prasad, Senior Debt Specialist and Professor Leonardo Hernandez, Lead Economist both from the Economic Policy and Debt Department, the World Bank; Mr Gregory Horman, Consultant, Banking and Debt Department, the World Bank; Carilus Odumbe, Adviser, Debt Management and Eleanor Chinkondenji, Programme Assistant both from the Special Advisory Services Division, the Commonwealth Secretariat.

Below are the pictures from this workshop: