A nascent recovery is underway in Thailand following the COVID-19 downturn. Ample policy buffers, underpinned by judicious management of public finances, allowed the authorities to implement a multipronged package of fiscal, monetary, and financial policies to mitigate the COVID-19 impact on...

The Canadian economy was operating at close to capacity and had strong policy buffers when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Economic and social restrictions put in place in March 2020 helped to mitigate the first wave of the virus, but they came at a significant cost. There was an unprecedented...

Covid-19 has exacted a tragic human, social, and economic toll on Mexico. Over 85,000 lives were lost; unofficial estimates are notably higher. Of 12 million workers that lost their jobs, most of whom came from the informal sector with a limited safety net, over 4 million remain out of the...

Armenia has commenced a robust recovery from the deep 2020 recession, benefiting from strong policies and the lifting of the political uncertainty after the elections in June. A gradual but uneven improvement in the pandemic situation, pent-up demand, and the strengthening of public and private...

The RBZ is in the process of recommencing on-site examinations, but due to COVID-19 operational restrictions, these will need to be undertaken remotely. The RBZ has developed a draft remote examination framework document to guide this work and requested AFS assistance to review the framework,...

Burundi is a fragile state with a history of political tensions and weak institutions. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Burundi was recovering from an economic recession triggered by the 2015 political crisis stemming from the late President Nkurunziza's decision to run for a third term. Real GDP...