The 27th session of the Steering Committee of the International Monetary Fund's Capacity Development Center for Central Africa (AFRITAC Central or AFC), which opened in hybrid mode on Tuesday, June 17, closed on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo.

The statutory agenda focused primarily on reviewing AFRITAC Central's achievements during fiscal year 2025 (May 2024 to April 2025); the notable successes presented by each country; the strategic priorities of the capacity development program; and emerging themes for the work program for fiscal year 2026 (May 2025 to April 2026). and the Center's budget for this new year.

In addition to the statutory work, participants organized themselves into three panels, moderated by experts from the countries and institutions benefiting from the Center's capacity development activities. These panels provided a forum for discussion aimed at taking stock of progress and challenges encountered; sharing best practices; and reflecting on the prospects for the major reforms initiated by the Center.

The first debate, focused on "the digitalization of tax administration for better domestic resource mobilization," was moderated by Déo Hatungimana, Commissioner of Internal Taxes and Non-Tax Revenue at the Burundi Revenue Office (OBR), and Bassirou Samba Niassa, Resident Advisor in charge of the AFC Tax Administration.

The second panel, moderated by Ms. Amélie Jeannine Behorou, Director General of the Budget of the Central African Republic; Espérance Olokabeka Obambo, Director of State Budget Preparation at the General Directorate of the Budget (DGB) of the Republic of Congo, and Ms. Amina Bambara Bila, Resident Advisor in charge of budget and expenditure control. This panel focused on "Program Budgeting (Issues and Prospects)."

The final panel, which focused on "The Implementation of Risk-Based Supervision in Central Africa: Challenges, Current Situations, and Prospects," was moderated by Lubanda Kabambi, Deputy Head of the Financial Intermediaries Supervision Directorate at the Central Bank of Congo (BCC) of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Eugenio Avisoa, Advisor in charge of Financial Supervision and Regulation at the Center.

After discussions and deliberations on the various items on the agenda, the participants of the Steering Committee approved the achievements of AFRITAC Central during the fiscal year 2025 and noted with satisfaction the implementation of the FCS Strategy and the continuation of synergistic activities in its work program for the fiscal year 2026; They also approved the AFRITAC Central Work Program for the fiscal year 2026, as well as the budget for the fiscal year 2026, which amounts to 9.3 million dollars (+5%, compared to the fiscal year 2025). They were satisfied with the extension and deepening of capacity development activities. The members of the Steering Committee stressed the need to secure more funding for the coming years and urged member countries to pay their contributions, on the basis of the signed agreements. They welcomed with interest the CAR's request to organize a regional seminar on the implementation of program budgeting, with the aim of sharing experiences. Furthermore, they noted with interest the need to continue the digitalization of tax administrations to further mobilize domestic revenues and emphasized the need to continue the reform of program budgeting in member countries. Finally, they invited member countries to continue implementing risk-based supervision in Central Africa.

The Republic of Congo is now entering its second year as chair of the Center's Steering Committee.

Closing the statutory proceedings, Ludovic Ngatsé, Minister of Economy, Planning and Regional Integration of Congo, representing Christian Yoka, Minister of Finance, Budget and Public Portfolio of the Republic of Congo, current Chair of the Steering Committee, welcomed the choice of the Republic of Congo to host and chair the 27th meeting of the Center's Steering Committee and reassured his country of its readiness to support the Center in the success of its activities under the presidency of the Republic of Congo.

Several other prominent figures enhanced the splendor of the 27th meeting of the AFRITAC Central Steering Committee in Brazzaville with their presence. These included Nestor Ntahontuye, Minister of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning of the Republic of Burundi; Ali Djadda Kampard, Secretary of State for Finance and Budget of the Republic of Chad. Also present were representatives of AFRITAC Central member countries (except Cameroon and Gabon); representatives of the IMF, the Central African Financial Market Surveillance Commission (COSUMAF), the Central Bank of Congo, the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), and development partners (France, China, and the European Union).

The Communication Unit of the Ministry of Finance, Budget, and Public Portfolio