Robert W. Edwards

Rob Edwards commenced duty as Director of the Statistics Department on September 1, 2004. Prior to joining the IMF in 2004, Mr. Edwards was Deputy Australian Statistician, Economic Statistics, at the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Mr. Edwards joined the ABS in November 1968 and held senior executive positions in statistical and user services, corporate services, population and social statistics as well as economic statistics. He was a member of the ABS executive management team for over 20 years. He received the Australian Public Service Medal in 2004 for distinguished service in economic statistics in Australia and in the international statistical community.

In 1995, Mr. Edwards headed the United Nations Expert Group on Critical Problems in Economic Statistics; that Group’s work has significantly influenced the work of the United Nations Statistical Commission since then. Mr. Edwards is a past Vice President of the International Association for Official Statistics.

Mr. Edwards is placing emphasis on ensuring the Statistics Department provides high-quality statistical services within the Fund as well as serving the national and international statistical communities. He is pursuing interests in the updating of the international standards for macroeconomic statistics; in training and technical assistance; and in the Fund’s surveillance work through the Review of Standards and Codes (Data Module) and the Special Data Dissemination Standards (SDDS) and the General Data Dissemination System (GDDS).