EAC Statistics E-Learning Resources · Monetary and Financial Statistics
EAC Statistics E-Learning Resources
A plain-language, slide-by-slide course on Monetary and Financial Statistics (MFS) in the East African Community — showing who has money, who owes money, and how money flows through the economy. Built on the IMF's Monetary and Financial Statistics framework and the EAC regional guidelines.
This online material explains Monetary and Financial Statistics in plain language. It follows the IMF's Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual and Compilation Guide and the EAC regional guidelines, covering the institutional sectors, the money holding, issuing and neutral sectors, the headline measures of money, the building blocks of every survey, the full family of analytical surveys — central bank, ODC, depository, OFC and financial corporations — the broad money ladder from M1 to M6, and the other MFS indicators including interest rates and lending by economic activity. It supports the MFS compiled and disseminated across the EAC.
What MFS is, the five institutional sectors, residency, and the split between depository and other financial corporations.
Money holding, issuing and neutral sectors, the headline measures, and the building blocks — NFA, NDA, credit, capital and other items net.
The Central Bank and ODC surveys, the consolidated Depository Corporations Survey, and broad money from M1 to M6.
Adding the non-deposit-takers and consolidating the whole financial sector, with full aggregates tables.
The family of interest rates and an interactive breakdown of lending by economic activity.
A shuffled final assessment drawn from a question bank, with a downloadable certificate on success.
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MFS · work through the modules, then take the final assessment
Each module is a short slide deck — open one, move through it slide by slide with Next and Previous, and return here to pick the next. A final assessment draws on all five modules; pass it to earn your certificate.
What Monetary & Financial Statistics measures, the institutional sectors, residency, and the split between depository and other financial corporations.
How sectors are grouped by their relationship to money, the two headline measures, and the building blocks of every monetary survey.
The Central Bank Survey, the ODC Survey, the consolidated Depository Corporations Survey, and the broad money ladder from M1 to M6.
Adding the non-deposit-takers, then consolidating the whole financial sector — with full aggregates tables and capital and other items net shown separately.
The family of interest rates that signal monetary conditions, and how lending is classified by economic activity — explored interactively.
A shuffled set drawn from a large question bank — pass to earn your EAC certificate.
What Monetary & Financial Statistics measures, the institutional sectors, residency, and the split between depository and other financial corporations.
Monetary and Financial Statistics (MFS) shows who has money, who owes money, and how money flows through the economy. This first module builds the foundations: what monetary and financial statistics are, the institutional sectors that the data is organised around, who counts as a resident or non-resident, and the all-important split of financial corporations into those that take deposits and those that do not.
Monetary and Financial Statistics shows who has money, who owes money, and how money flows through the economy.
It is built from two closely related parts:
MFS underpins monetary policy, financial-stability monitoring and the EAC's macroeconomic convergence. It tells the central bank how much money is circulating, how fast credit is growing, and how exposed the financial sector is — the signals behind interest-rate and liquidity decisions.
Monetary statistics is compiled around institutional sectors. An institutional unit is one that has its own balance sheet, can take on debts and liabilities, and can enter into contracts on its own behalf.
There are five broad institutional sectors:
| Sector | What it is | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Households | People who live together and share some of their money and expenses — one person or a group. | A family; a single-person household |
| Financial Corporations | Institutions whose primary business is offering financial services. | Central bank, commercial banks, money market funds, insurance, pension funds |
| Non-Financial Corporations | Institutions whose primary business is offering non-financial goods and services. | Private companies; public non-financial corporations |
| General Government | Legal entities established by political processes that depend mainly on budget allocation. | Ministries, commissions, local government, social security funds |
| Non-profit Institutions Serving Households (NPISH) | Institutions that provide services to households and do not aim to make profits. | Churches, mission hospitals, NGOs |
Non-Financial Corporations split into public non-financial corporations (Government-owned or majority-held, funded by charging market prices, not dependent on Government allocation) and private companies / other non-financial corporations (ONFC), which are not Government-owned and charge market prices.
General Government splits into central government (depends mainly on Government allocation — national ministries, commissions, agencies) and local government (sub-governments such as counties, districts and communes that generate their own revenue, may receive allocation, and control their own spending). The rule of thumb: entities that depend on budget allocation are general government; entities that earn their own income and are Government-owned are public non-financial corporations.
MFS records the financial sector's interactions with the rest of the world, so it must be clear who is inside the economy and who is outside it.
Residency is about where the unit's economic interest is centred, not nationality or ownership. A foreign-owned factory operating in the country is a resident; a citizen running a business based abroad is a non-resident.
Within financial corporations, MFS draws one distinction above all others: which institutions take deposits and which do not.
Deposit-takers are money issuers — when they lend, they create money. Other financial corporations are not. That is why the depository/other distinction sits at the heart of every monetary survey.
How sectors are grouped by their relationship to money, the two headline measures, and the building blocks of every monetary survey.
This module sets up the analytical framework. First it regroups the institutional sectors by their relationship to money — those that hold it, those that issue it, and those that are neutral. Then it introduces the two headline measures of money — broad money and the monetary base — and the building blocks every monetary survey is assembled from: Net Foreign Assets, Net Domestic Assets, credit to the various sectors, capital, and other items net.
The institutional sectors can be regrouped by their relationship to money — into money holding, money issuing and money neutral sectors.
| Group | Role | Who is in it |
|---|---|---|
| Money Holding Sectors (MHS) | Keep money to spend, save or invest, but do not create money — the users of money, not the makers. | Households, Local Government, NPISH, Other Financial Corporations, Non-Financial Corporations |
| Money Issuing Sectors | Create and control the supply of money. The Central Bank issues currency; ODCs create money by lending out the deposits they receive, putting more money into circulation. | Central Bank, Other Depository Corporations (ODCs) |
| Money Neutral Sectors | Neither typical users nor makers. Central Government balances with banks do not represent immediate spending plans; non-residents' main economic interests are outside the economic territory, so their effect on the local economy is uncertain. | Central Government, Non-residents |
Broad money is defined as money held by the money holding sectors. Getting the grouping right is what makes the headline money measures meaningful.
Two headline measures of money sit at the centre of MFS — broad money and the monetary base.
| Broad money | Monetary base | |
|---|---|---|
| Whose money? | Held by money holding sectors | Liabilities of the central bank |
| Captures | Cash + deposits + close substitutes | Currency + reserve deposits at the central bank |
| Tells you | Money available to the wider economy | The base that supports credit and money creation |
The financial sector's balance sheet has three key outputs: Net Foreign Assets, Net Domestic Assets and broad money. The first two are the asset side; broad money is the main liability counterpart.
| Building block | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Net Credit to Government (NCG) | Lending to central government via securities (treasury bills and bonds) and loans, minus government deposits and other obligations the financial sector owes government. |
| Credit to the Private Sector | Total lending to private companies, households and NPISH — the most direct measure of support to private economic activity. |
| Credit to State & Local Government | Total lending to state and local government. |
| Credit to Public Non-Financial Corporations | Total lending to state-owned corporations. |
| Capital | The sector's own funds — shareholders' equity, retained profits and reserves; its financial strength and resilience to shocks. |
| Other Items Net | All unclassified assets minus unclassified liabilities, plus consolidation adjustments when claims and liabilities across and within subsectors do not balance. |
On a monetary survey, the asset side is NFA + NDA, and its main counterpart on the liability side is broad money (alongside capital and other items). This is the backbone of every survey in the next modules.
The Central Bank Survey, the ODC Survey, the consolidated Depository Corporations Survey, and the broad money ladder from M1 to M6.
Monetary statistics are presented through a series of analytical surveys that combine institutional data into standardised outputs. This module covers the depository corporations: the Central Bank Survey, the Other Depository Corporations (ODC) Survey, and the consolidated Depository Corporations Survey (DCS) — which equals the Central Bank Survey plus the ODC Survey. It then builds the full ladder of broad money, from the most liquid M1 to the broadest M6.
The analytical surveys combine institutional data into standardised outputs. They build on one another, starting with the central bank.
The Central Bank Survey presents the central bank's balance sheet in the standard MFS structure. Its line items are:
| Line item | What it captures |
|---|---|
| Net Foreign Assets | The central bank's foreign assets minus its liabilities to the rest of the world (a large share of official reserves). |
| Net Domestic Assets | Net credit to central government, credit to the private sector, net credit to ODCs, and net credit to OFCs. |
| Capital | The central bank's own funds. |
| Other Items Net | Unclassified assets minus unclassified liabilities, plus consolidation adjustments. |
| Monetary Base | Currency in circulation plus ODC and money-holding-sector deposits at the central bank — the base that supports credit and broad money. |
The Central Bank Survey shows the stance of monetary policy at the source — reserves, the monetary base, and the central bank's claims on government and the rest of the financial system.
The ODC Survey consolidates all the other deposit-takers — commercial and community banks, deposit-taking microfinance institutions and SACCOs, and Money Market Funds.
| Aggregate | What it captures |
|---|---|
| Net Foreign Assets | ODCs' foreign assets minus their liabilities to the rest of the world. |
| Net Domestic Assets | Net credit to central government; credit to state & local government; net credit to public non-financial corporations; credit to the private sector; net credit to the central bank; and net credit to OFCs. |
| Capital | ODCs' own funds — equity, retained profits and reserves. |
| Other Items Net | Unclassified assets minus unclassified liabilities, plus consolidation adjustments. |
| Liquid Liabilities | ODCs' deposit and deposit-substitute liabilities to money holding sectors — the part of their balance sheet that forms broad money. |
Within the ODC Survey, credit to the private sector is watched closely — it is the most direct measure of how the banking system is funding households and businesses.
The Depository Corporations Survey (DCS) consolidates the two depository surveys: DCS = Central Bank Survey + ODC Survey. It is the workhorse of monetary analysis and the source of broad money.
An instrument is included in broad money if it can be turned into cash quickly without losing value (maturity of deposits or close substitutes no more than 2 years), is held by money holding sectors, and is accepted as a medium of exchange and store of value. Broad money excludes restricted deposits, fixed deposits over 2 years, and deposits at banks in the process of closure.
| Measure | Definition |
|---|---|
| M1 | Currency outside banks + transferable deposits of MHS (current accounts, mobile deposits). The most liquid money, for everyday transactions. |
| M2 | M1 + savings and time deposits of MHS (maturity ≤ 2 years). |
| M3 | M2 + foreign currency deposits of MHS. |
| M4 | M3 + debt securities issued by DCs and held by MHS. |
| M5 | M4 + Money Market Fund shares/units held by MHS. |
| M6 | M5 + debt securities issued by non-DCs and held by MHS — the broadest measure. |
M3 shows how monetary policy is flowing through the banking system into the wider economy. If M3 expands much faster than economic activity it can signal rising inflation risk; if it grows too slowly it can hint at weak credit transmission or financial stress.
Adding the non-deposit-takers, then consolidating the whole financial sector — with full aggregates tables and capital and other items net shown separately.
This module completes the survey family. The Other Financial Corporations (OFC) Survey brings in the financial institutions that do not take deposits — insurance, pension funds, credit-only microfinance and forex bureaus. The Financial Corporations Survey (FCS) then consolidates everything: FCS = Depository Corporations Survey + OFC Survey. Both are presented with full aggregates tables, and capital and other items net are shown as separate line items.
The OFC Survey covers the financial corporations that do not take deposits — insurance companies, pension funds, credit-only microfinance institutions and forex bureaus.
| Aggregate | What it captures |
|---|---|
| Net Foreign Assets | OFCs' foreign assets minus their liabilities to the rest of the world. |
| Net Domestic Assets | Net credit to central government; net credit to state & local government; credit to public non-financial corporations; credit to the private sector; and net credit to depository corporations. |
| Capital | OFCs' own funds — equity, retained profits and reserves. |
| Other Items Net | Unclassified assets minus unclassified liabilities, plus consolidation adjustments. (Shown separately from capital.) |
| Non-liquid Liabilities | OFC liabilities that are not part of broad money — e.g. insurance technical reserves and pension entitlements. |
OFCs hold a growing share of household savings through pensions and insurance. The OFC Survey captures that activity and the credit OFCs extend to the rest of the economy — flows the depository surveys miss.
The Financial Corporations Survey consolidates the whole financial sector: FCS = Depository Corporations Survey + OFC Survey. It is the most complete view of the financial sector's claims and liabilities.
| Aggregate | What it captures |
|---|---|
| Net Foreign Assets | The whole financial sector's foreign assets minus its liabilities to the rest of the world. |
| Net Domestic Assets | Net credit to government; net credit to state & local government; net credit to public non-financial corporations; and credit to the private sector. |
| Capital | The financial sector's combined own funds. |
| Other Items Net | Unclassified assets minus unclassified liabilities, plus consolidation adjustments. (A separate line from capital.) |
| Liquid Liabilities | The sector's deposit and deposit-substitute liabilities that form part of broad money. |
| Non-liquid Liabilities | Liabilities not part of broad money — longer-term and contractual obligations such as insurance and pension liabilities. |
On every survey, capital (own funds) and other items net (unclassified balances and consolidation adjustments) are reported as two distinct line items — they measure different things and should never be merged.
The five surveys form one connected family — each consolidating the level below it.
| Survey | Covers | Headline output |
|---|---|---|
| Central Bank Survey | The central bank | Monetary base |
| ODC Survey | Other deposit-takers | Liquid liabilities |
| Depository Corporations Survey | Central Bank + ODCs | Broad money |
| OFC Survey | Non-deposit-takers | OFC credit & non-liquid liabilities |
| Financial Corporations Survey | The whole financial sector | Consolidated claims & liabilities |
Read together, the surveys answer the core MFS questions: how much money exists (broad money), where credit is going (to government, public corporations, the private sector), and how exposed the sector is to the rest of the world (NFA).
The family of interest rates that signal monetary conditions, and how lending is classified by economic activity — explored interactively.
Alongside the surveys, MFS compiles other indicators that describe monetary conditions and the structure of credit. This module covers the family of interest rates — from the central bank rate that signals policy to the deposit and lending rates faced by customers — and the breakdown of lending by economic activity, which shows which parts of the economy the financial sector is funding. You'll explore the activities interactively.
Interest rates are the prices of money. MFS compiles a family of them, each signalling something different about monetary conditions.
| Rate | What it is |
|---|---|
| Central Bank rate | Signals the monetary policy direction. Up makes borrowing more expensive, slowing spending and inflation; down makes borrowing cheaper, encouraging loans, investment and growth. |
| Re-discount rate | The rate at which the central bank lends to commercial banks as lender of last resort, including when banks rediscount government securities before maturity for liquidity. |
| Reserve requirement ratio | The proportion of banks' deposit liabilities that must be kept at the central bank. A higher ratio constrains how much banks can lend. |
| Repo rate | The rate on short-term loans by ODCs to the central bank, mainly for policy operations where the central bank mops up liquidity. |
| Interbank rate | The rate at which ODCs lend to each other, usually overnight or up to 7 days, to cover temporary cash shortages. |
| Local currency savings rate | The market rate ODCs pay on local-currency savings deposits (excluding preferential rates). |
| Overall local currency deposit rate | The market rate ODCs pay on local-currency deposits — savings and fixed deposits combined. |
| Overall lending rate | The market rate ODCs charge on local-currency loans (excluding preferential lending rates). |
| Treasury bill rates | Rates on short-term treasury bills of up to one year (91, 182 and 364 days). |
| Treasury bond rates | Rates on long-term government bonds with maturities of more than a year. |
The central bank rate sets the tone; the interbank rate shows how tight liquidity is between banks; and the gap between deposit and lending rates (the spread) reflects the cost and risk of credit in the economy.
MFS breaks the financial sector's lending down by economic activity — which industries are receiving credit. This shows where the financial sector is supporting the real economy, following the international standard industrial classification.
Click any economic activity below to read exactly what it covers. Use it as a reference whenever you classify or interpret lending data.
This assessment has 43 questions in its bank; you will be asked a randomly selected 20, with a 20-minute time limit. The question order and the answer options are shuffled on every attempt, so refreshing or retaking the assessment mixes in new questions. You need 75% to pass and earn your certificate.