Statement by Mr. Je-Yoon Shin, Deputy Minister for International Affairs of Korea on the Santiago Principles

Press Release No. 08/10
October 11, 2008

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. And thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I believe that the setting out the GAPP itself is a significant achievement. They are a comprehensive set of principles which could help alleviate concerns and reduce protectionist pressures through a better understanding of the role and practices of sovereign wealth funds.

When the talks on GAPP commenced last April, I had thought that elaboration of a set of best practices would be a daunting challenge. Yet, we made it to set out a comprehensive set of GAPP, thanks to the contribution from the OECD, the World Bank, and the recipient countries.

Despite the achievement, however, further works of IWG, together with other related parties, are needed to strengthen the Principle over time. Involved parties may want to review and elaborate further on the issues, particularly, including public disclosure of financial information, ex-post voting, and procedure for regular review of the implementation of the Principles.

In line with these developments, we support the proposal to transform the IWG into a standing group of sovereign wealth funds. This group would ensure the ongoing adequacy and enhancement of the Principles, facilitate their implementation and dissemination, and release aggregate financial information on the operations of sovereign wealth funds. 

 

We would encourage the IMF to continue to collaborate with the IWG, providing advice particularly on integrating sovereign wealth funds into macroeconomic policy frameworks, and disseminate knowledge through surveillance activities. We also believe the Fund can play a useful facilitating role between sovereign wealth funds and recipient countries, and we would like to encourage the Fund to coordinate closely with the OECD.

Thank you for your attention.