In Guatemala City, from April 20 to 24, 2026, the 15th Meeting of the Working Group on Government Finance Statistics (GFSWG) of the Council of Ministers of Finance of Central America, Panama, and the Dominican Republic (COSEFIN) was held. The event included a joint technical meeting between COSEFIN’s Government Finance Statistics compilers and the regional National Accounts compilers of the Central American Monetary Council (CMCA), aimed at strengthening the consistency, harmonization, and quality of macroeconomic statistics, based on international standards.
The meeting was carried out with the technical and financial support of the Central America, Panama, and Dominican Republic Regional Technical Assistance Center (CAPTAC-DR) and was convened and regionally facilitated by the Executive Secretariat of COSEFIN (SECOSEFIN) and the Executive Secretariat of the Central American Monetary Council (SECMCA). It also included the participation of experts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as a presentation on Colombia’s national experience, delivered by the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of that country.
During the first part of the event, Government Finance Statistics and National Accounts compilers analyzed the conceptual and practical foundations of consistency between the System of National Accounts (SNA) and Government Finance Statistics (GFS), including the guidelines of the Government Finance Statistics Manual (GFSM 2014) and the main changes resulting from the update of the 2025 SNA. These sessions included conceptual presentations, practical reconciliation exercises, and technical discussion spaces aimed at identifying discrepancies and opportunities for improvement.
In a second phase, the 15th Meeting of the GFSWG was held as COSEFIN’s dedicated working space, during which member countries presented their recent progress in the compilation and improvement of Government Finance Statistics and public sector debt data. During these sessions, persistent challenges and opportunities for improvement were jointly analyzed, as well as progress in implementing the regional harmonization plan, with the aim of strengthening the comparability and consistency of fiscal information across the region.
Participants agreed on the importance of strengthening technical coordination among institutions responsible for statistical compilation and emphasized that structured dialogue between Government Finance and National Accounts teams is a key element for advancing toward more integrated, robust statistical systems aligned with international standards.
Finally, within the framework of the 15th GFSWG Meeting, specific discussions were held on the preparation of the 11th edition of the Regional Government Finance Statistics Report, defining inputs, responsibilities, and next steps for its development, as one of the Group’s main regional outputs.
From SECOSEFIN, in coordination with CAPTAC-DR, SECMCA, and the IMF, these spaces for regional technical coordination will continue to be promoted, in line with COSEFIN’s established priorities, reaffirming the commitment of CAPARD region countries to strengthening high-quality fiscal and macroeconomic statistics that support informed decision-making and the design of more effective public policies.
