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Location: AA02 Al Karaouine
OVERVIEW
Many low-income and emerging economies are facing heavy debt burdens, limiting their ability to invest in education, healthcare, social protection, and infrastructure. For some, debt is already unsustainable. This seminar will explore options to boost resilience to debt risks, including through domestic reforms to enhance growth, improve expenditure policies, boost domestic revenue mobilization, and strengthen debt management. It will also discuss the need for scaled-up support from the global community through the provision of concessional financing and technical assistance, as well as improvements in sovereign debt restructuring processes for timely and predictable debt relief when needed.
SPEAKERS
Kristalina Georgieva
Managing Director, IMF
Kristalina Georgieva is the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). She is the first person from an emerging market economy to lead the IMF since its inception in 1944. Before joining the Fund, Ms. Georgieva was Chief Executive Officer of the World Bank and also served as Interim President for a time. Previously, she served at the European Commission as Vice President for Budget and Human Resources – and as Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response. She was named “European of the Year” and “Commissioner of the Year” by European Voice for her leadership in the European Union’s humanitarian response to crises.
Ajay Banga
President, World Bank Group
Ajay Banga began his five-year term as World Bank Group President on June 2, 2023.
Ajay Banga most recently served as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Previously, he was President and CEO of Mastercard, a global organization with nearly 24,000 employees. Under his leadership, MasterCard launched the Center for Inclusive Growth, which advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. He was Honorary Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, serving as Chairman from 2020-2022. He became an advisor to General Atlantic’s climate-focused fund, BeyondNetZero, at its inception in 2021. Banga served as Co-Chair of the Partnership for Central America, a coalition of private organizations that works to advance economic opportunity across underserved populations in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. He was previously on the Boards of the American Red Cross, Kraft Foods, and Dow Inc.
Ajay Banga is a co-founder of The Cyber Readiness Institute and was Vice Chair of the Economic Club of New York. He was awarded the Foreign Policy Association Medal in 2012, the Padma Shri Award by the President of India in 2016, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and the Business Council for International Understanding’s Global Leadership Award in 2019, and the Distinguished Friends of Singapore Public Service Star in 2021.
Mohammed Al-Jadaan
Minister of Finance, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
His Excellency Mohammad Al-Jadaan is Minister of Finance for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Saudi Public Investment Fund and Saudi Aramco; the Ministerial Council of the OPEC Fund for International Development; the Board of Governors of the World Bank and IMF, Arab Monetary Fund, Islamic Development Bank, and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank; and heads the Kingdom's delegation to the meetings of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. Prior to his appointment as Minister, he served as Chairman of the Board of the Capital Market Authority of Saudi Arabia, and was a founding partner of Al-Jadaan and Partners Law Firm.
Anna Gelpern
Professor of Law and International Finance at Georgetown Law
Anna Gelpern is a Scott K. Ginsburg Professor of Law and International Finance at Georgetown Law and a nonresident senior fellow at the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics. She has published research on government debt, contracts, and regulation of financial institutions and markets. She has co-authored a law textbook on International Finance, and has contributed to international initiatives on financial reform and government debt. She co-directs the Sovereign Debt Forum, a collaboration among Georgetown Law’s Institute of International Economic Law and academic institutions in the United States and Europe, dedicated to cutting edge research and capacity building in sovereign debt management.
Situmbeko Musokotwane
Minister of Finance and National Planning for the Republic of Zambia
Hon. Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane, MP was appointed as the Minister of Finance and National Planning for the Republic of Zambia in August 2021.
In his current portfolio, he has been at the forefront of spearheading Zambia’s economic transformation agenda. In November, 2021, he successfully led discussions for Zambia to reach a Staff Level Agreement with the International Monetary Fund under the Fund’s Extended Credit Facility which was approved in August, 2022. This Facility has supported Zambia’s economic recovery efforts. Dr. Musokotwane has also led the Ministry in discussions with Zambia’s Official Creditor Committee who in June 2023 reached an agreement for debt treatment in accordance with the principle of rendering Zambia’s debt to be sustainable.
Dr. Musokotwane has served as Minister of Finance, Economic Advisor to Zambia’s third Republican President and has held other key positions in Government and the Central Bank of Zambia.
He holds a Doctorate in Monetary Economics from the University of Konstanz in Germany, a Master of Arts in Monetary Economics from the University of Dar-Es-Salaam and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from the University of Zambia.
MODERATOR
Joumanna Bercetche
Anchor, CNBC
Joumanna Bercetche is co-anchor of the European edition of CNBC’s ‘Street Signs’. In addition to providing commentary and analysis on major company earnings and macro events, Joumanna spends much of her time interviewing policymakers and CFOs/ CEOs from across EMEA. She also reports live on monetary policy decisions of financial institutions around the world, such as the European Central Bank and Bank of England.
