00:00 00:00 Welcome and message by U.S. President Joe Biden

03:00 Remarks by Ahmed Munawar, Annual Meetings Chairman and Governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA)

10:58 Remarks by Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

31:15  Remarks by Ajay Banga, President, World Bank Group

1:03:37 Procedures of the 2024 Annual Meetings Plenary

[Ahmed Munawar] Governors, ladies and gentlemen, it’s my pleasure to call to order the 2024 Annual Meetings of the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. I welcome the Governors representing our member countries. Let us first watch together a short video addressed by the President of the United States.

[Joe Biden] Hello, everyone, and welcome to Washington. Eighty years ago, our forebears came together to establish the IMF and the World Bank. Their goal was to build a more stable, more fair, and more prosperous world for everyone. Today, we make further progress toward that goal. We need to urgently evolve our institutions to respond to the challenges of our time. Accelerating the clean energy transformation. Empowering workers. Closing the infrastructure gap. Addressing pervasive non-market practices. Ensuring our institutions represent all the people we serve. We’re already making important headway together. At the World Bank, we’ve unlocked over $140 billion in new lending. At the IMF, the United States has delivered over $20 billion in additional lending. And together, we’ve made sure African countries have more seats at the table. So my message today is very simple. Let’s keep it up. As we’re heading in the G20 Summit next month, we all need to make a stronger commitment to the International Development Association and we need to help countries saddled with debt, because nations citizens shouldn’t have to choose between investing in the future or paying back their creditors. Let me close with this: Like 80 years ago, we stand at an inflection point where the decisions we make now will determine the course of our future for decades to come. Will we act with urgency and purpose to meet the moment? I believe there’s only one answer. We can, we must, and we will. Thank you.

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] On behalf of all participants, I would like to extend through the Governors of United States, our deep appreciation to the people of the United States for their warm welcome and gracious hospitality. It is customary in these Meetings for the Chair to address the Governors, and I shall proceed this way. Bi-smi llāhi r-raḥmāni r-raḥīmi. As-alam-alaikum and a very good morning. It is a great honor to welcome you to the 2024 Plenary of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. A warm welcome to the Managing Director of the IMF Kristalina Georgieva and the President of the World Bank Group Ajay Banga. Congratulations Ms. Georgieva, on commencing your second term as the MD. This year is special. We are celebrating the 80th anniversary of the Bretton Woods Institutions, a major milestone in the history of global economic governance. I would like to reflect on the words of the first Annual Meetings Chair of the Boards of Governors, U.S. Treasury Secretary, John W. Snyder: “In joining the Fund and the Bank, our respective governments have not only invested large sums of money, but they have in a considerable measure staked their economic destinies on the success of these institutions. We must not fail our governments and, above all, the hopeful people we represent.” These words hold true today, as they did 80 years ago. For 80 years, the IMF and World Bank have remained beacons of hope, managing global crises from wars to pandemics. Even in tough times, we find resilience. Chairing the Board of Governors in this historic Meeting by a small state like my country, Dhivehi Raajjeyge or Maldives, is a sign of the inclusivity of these institutions. Despite tighter financial conditions and rising geopolitical tensions, the global economy is showing remarkable strength. A soft landing is within reach. Inflation is moderating. Yet, we cannot become complacent. Uncertainty remains high. Ongoing conflicts and upheavals in many parts of the world cast a shadow over our progress, and further escalations would have a much larger impact on vulnerable economies, including through higher commodity prices. It is true that significant challenges remain, and I would like to highlight three such challenges. Firstly, climate change. As you all know, small countries like my country, the Maldives, are on the front lines of climate change. We are aiming to have 33% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2028. This may be a very ambitious target, but we believe this transition will build climate resilience and will also deliver significant foreign exchange savings. Achieving the target requires around 1.3 billion dollars to upgrade power infrastructure, of which only 13% has been pledged by the donors so far. For this reason, Small Island Developing States like the Maldives call on international financial institutions to provide us with easier and affordable climate finance for adaptation and mitigation on the principles of a just transition. While the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Fund and the World Bank’s record 42.6 billion dollars in the fiscal year 2024 in climate finance are commendable. More is needed, especially for climate vulnerable SIDS. Additionally, we must innovatively rethink and implement strategies to mobilize private sector investments. Secondly, debt sustainability. Data shows over two-thirds of emerging markets and developing economies are at high risk of debt distress. While the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable has encouraged collaboration, more action is needed. And we can do more. Debt sustainability analysis must better account for country context, and the ongoing review of the Debt Sustainability Framework for Low-Income Countries should look at the specific needs of SIDS. The IMF, World Bank, and MDBs should take bold steps to support countries in debt distress. MDBs can also create tools like debt-for-climate swaps, exchanging debt relief for climate adaptation investments. Finally, structural reforms. We must strengthen the productive and state capacities of emerging and developing economies. The Bretton Woods Institutions should focus more on job creation, equal opportunities, economic diversification, and the impact of refugee flows. Similarly, structural reforms must be socially acceptable, to ensure the benefits are widely shared. Over the past year, the IMF and World Bank have undertaken significant initiatives to support our members. The completion of the 16th General Review of Quotas, the IDA21 Replenishment, and discussions on quota realignment and strengthening World Bank Group’s financing will help ensure that these institutions remain adequately resourced. At the same time, let us not lose our sight of the importance of providing adequate access and representation to the countries which need MDB support the most, as well as ensuring evenhanded treatment across the membership. The review of the IMF’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, Charges and Surcharge Policy together with the World Bank’s IDA21 Replenishment demonstrate support for our most vulnerable nations. As I reflect on the discussions I have had during these Annual Meetings, one theme has emerged strongly: the critical need for multilateral cooperation. My friends, collective action is the antidote to an increasingly fragmented world. The 80th anniversary of the Bretton Woods Institutions provides a moment to reflect on our collective achievements, and plan for a better future together. Let me extend a warm welcome to Liechtenstein, which earlier this week joined the IMF as 191st member, further reinforcing the importance of multilateralism. I am pleased with addition of the 25th Chair at the IMF’s Executive Board for Sub-Saharan Africa, and urge my fellow Governors to champion gender diversity and equality. As the Bretton Woods Institutions plan for the future, they should tailor their advice and activities to meet the specific needs and capacities of each member. If we fail to do this, we fail the people we represent, as John Snyder wisely reminded us 80 years ago. As I conclude, let us remind ourselves of our unwavering commitment to macroeconomic stability, prosperity, and cooperation. I thank you very much.

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] At this time, I would like to call on the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Ms. Georgieva to address the Government.

[Applause]

[Kristalina Georgieva] Thank you, Governor Munawar, and a very good morning to all! It is my privilege to address you on behalf of the talented and committed staff of the IMF, and to do so alongside Ajay Banga, who has been a great partner since he started in his job. Ajay, I cannot stress enough how much I admire your leadership and value our partnership, between us, and between our institutions! Let me start with some good news: Inflation is in retreat. From 5.7% in the fourth quarter of last year, our World Economic Outlook sees global inflation falling to 5.3% in the current quarter and further to 3.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025, with a faster decline in advanced economies. Tight monetary policies have worked without breaking the back of the global economy. Big sense of relief. But not yet time for celebration, including, even if inflation is coming down, the new and higher price levels are here to stay. Families are hurting. And, looking ahead, the world now faces a low growth-high debt trajectory: We project global GDP to grow at an anemic average rate of 3.2% per year over the next five years, just look at how our forecasts have been revised lower and lower over the years. At the same time, we forecast global public debt to keep rising, with a risk that it could exceed our baseline projection by as much as 20% of world GDP in a severe but plausible negative scenario. A hundred trillion dollars in government debt worldwide. Higher interest rate payments eating up a growing slice of fiscal revenues, especially in low-income and emerging market economies. All of this as while spending pressures pile up. Spending priorities include outlays related to climate and demography and, in emerging market and low-income countries, investment to close the development gaps. By 2030, IMF research sees these spending pressures adding some 7% of GDP to annual expenditure in advanced economies, 9% of GDP in emerging markets, 14% in low-income countries. If you think it is tough now, just imagine how tougher it will become. To make matters worse, the world is fracturing, and trade is no longer the powerful engine of growth that it used to be. The retreat from global economic integration, driven by both national security concerns and the anger of those who lost out from it, is visible in a mushrooming of industrial policy measures, trade barriers, and protectionism. There is much work to do. My message to our members is this: First, shift toward rebuilding fiscal buffers; second, invest in growth-enhancing reforms; and third, work together to tackle global challenges. With monetary policy easing, fiscal consolidation should start now. Credibility requires persuasive communication with the public. Multi-year fiscal plans should lay out consolidation paths tailored to country-specific circumstances. This is not easy. Governments face a dilemma, more accurately a “trilemma”, of large spending needs, political redlines on taxation, and the need to rebuild buffers. Domestic revenue mobilization will be critical for many countries to square this circle. Growth-enhancing investments, notably in climate and technology, must be protected. And consolidation should be designed so it does not come at the expense of social protection and jobs. And the IMF can help. Take for instance the case of Jamaica, where the government secured public support for a carefully designed package of revenue and expenditure reforms that protected public investment and social spending yet still succeeded in almost halving debt between 2012 and 2022. More than 20 countries have been able to boost their tax revenues by over 5% of GDP in the past three decades. There are many good examples. In parallel with fiscal consolidations, countries must launch ambitious reforms to lift their growth potential. Higher growth not only helps creates well-paid jobs but also eases the fiscal trilemma by generating higher tax revenues. These reforms span labor-market measures such as skills enhancement and job matching, product-market measures to cut red tape and mobilize savings, and specific measures to foster innovation and raise productivity. In the advanced economies, venture capital and capital market integration are key priorities; elsewhere, the focus needs to include steps to improve governance and institutions. Real progress is possible. A new IMF study shows that reforms are best developed through two-way dialog with the public, with measures to mitigate the impact on those who risk losing out. But domestic policies will not be enough. To tackle today’s global challenges, we need, more than ever, cooperation and multilateral action. The IMF and World Bank play a critical role. Take the issue of debt. In countries on the edge of fiscal distress, proactive steps are necessary to restore debt sustainability. And at the Fund has prioritized addressing debt vulnerabilities and enhancing debt resolution, with efforts that are now paying off. Already, the Common Framework has delivered milestone achievements for Ghana and Ethiopia, even if, I agree with you, Chair, further efforts are so necessary to increase predictability and accelerate debt treatments. Progress has been underpinned by enhanced cooperation among stakeholders at the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable, we met again in these Meetings, it has helped build consensus on complicated technical issues. In today’s high-temperature geopolitical environment, we cannot take cooperation for granted. This is why everything we do at the Fund is about delivering value to our members, tailored to their needs. Our bilateral surveillance provides timely diagnostics and advice to help countries implement strong policies. During the pandemic, it was pivotal in helping countries assemble coordinated policy responses swiftly, despite high uncertainty. The focus of our regular consultations with member countries ranges from supporting institutional development in fragile and conflict-affected states, to capital flow management in emerging market economies, to advising on the details of interest rate policy in advanced economies. And we have deepened our analysis of the macroeconomic policy challenges posed by the green and digital transformations. Our multilateral surveillance then pulls it all together to extract cross-cutting lessons for all. Again, the goal is to ensure that problems are identified and addressed early. This is precisely what we do in our flagship reports, the World Economic Outlook, the Global Financial Stability Report, and the Fiscal Monitor. All of this is complemented by our capacity development work. We have fielded thousands of technical assistance missions in the last five years alone, transferring knowledge and creating a deep well of goodwill in the process. In short, we are the world’s essential transmission line for the sharing of country experiences across our membership. And then, there is the Fund’s unique role as a lender at the center of the global financial safety net. We are the first responder in times of trouble. Countries know we are here to catch them if they fall, especially the poorest and most vulnerable. We have stepped up our lending to support reforms and help vulnerable countries address balance of payment needs and build resilience in the face of multiple shocks. Barbados and Benin, Cabo Verde and Costa Rica, Moldova and Morocco, Suriname and Sri Lanka, just to name but a few, the list of recent IMF program successes is long. In the years since the onset of the pandemic, we have set records for both our total lending volume and the number of countries assisted, with the stock of concessional credit outstanding from our Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust tripling to 28 billion dollars. And, in the less than three years since its launch, 20 countries have received long-term loans from our Resilience and Sustainability Trust, supporting policies to boost resilience to climate change. At the Fund we are currently exhibiting an artwork that captures our lending volumes over the decades in a beautifully visual way, the results are truly remarkable, and what you see for yourself is… Oh, that’s me putting the last ball of Resilience and Sustainability Trust, every ball is 500 million SDRs. What you can see is how much we have done. Why? Because the needs have been so significant. We got 50% quota increase last year in Marrakesh, we needed it, it solidifies our lending capacity. We will build on these foundations by continuing to refine our toolkit. Strengthening the Fund’s lending role and precautionary credit facilities strengthens the global financial safety net. All countries stand to benefit, because less instability means the whole world does better, and because aggregating resources together is efficient. Fund support is essential for countries with a limited capacity to build international reserves, and doubly so given that five countries own more than half of the world’s total reserves, while many, many countries remain relatively unprotected. At the IMF, we have just had a great example of cooperation occurring on the very eve of these Annual Meetings. Reflecting years of strong net income, our Executive Board agreed on a set of measures that will, first, safeguard the financial strength that underpins our support for our members; second, reduce charges and surcharges on our regular lending by an average of 36 percent; and, three, deliver a comprehensive reform and financing package that more than doubles our concessional lending capacity and places our support for low-income countries on a firm footing. Beyond the substance of these important reforms, let me highlight that we succeeded in securing unanimous support. Not a single member country objected. And that… And bravo, thank you for that.

[Applause]

[Kristalina Georgieva] This didn’t “just happen”. At the moment, it felt like hurting 190 hands. We had to work very hard for it, and we iterated many times with our members to deliver a result that in the end worked for everybody. This is a lesson for the coming years. No matter how difficult the geopolitics may be, we can work to preserve the spirit of concrete, actionable cooperation. Countries rally not in idealism or charity but out of enlightened self-interest. To do our job well we must strive for inclusivity. We heard that from our Chair, please join me in warmly welcoming Prime Minister Daniel Risch and his team, they are here to represent our newest, 191st member, the Principality of Liechtenstein.

[Applause]

[Kristalina Georgieva] We must also never stop striving for fair representation of the world we live in. Work is ongoing with our Board, as we heard from the Chair, to get, by June 2025, possible approaches as a guide to better reflect members’ weight in the world economy, including through a new quota formula. Similarly, voice matters. I am delighted that on November 1 we will add a 25th Chair to our Board of Executive Directors, welcoming the third Director for Sub-Saharan Africa, ensuring more voice for this region. Last but definitely not least, cooperation does not happen in a vacuum. At the Fund, we rely on institutional strength and we rely on our excellent staff to do the work of supporting our member countries. Please, join me in a round of applause for our people!

[Applause]

[Kristalina Georgieva] They are right here. They are right here, but most of them are back at the offices working. Let me close with an anecdote. This year being the 80th anniversary of the historic Bretton Woods conference, Ajay and I decided to go to our birthplace. We took a group of leading thinkers with us for two days of reflection. We went to draw inspiration from our founders: men who, even in the darkest days of a World War, were able to shape a better future. And we understood, if Keynes and White could shine a light in a tunnel that dark, then clearly, our mission is to carry their torch. The skies over Bretton Woods were mostly dark and gloomy during these two days. But then, suddenly, the sun broke through, and Mother Nature gifted us a gorgeous double rainbow. Set against the turning foliage of Mount Washington in the Fall, it was, as you see, spectacular. To us, that was a great omen, and a reminder that the sun is always there, it is only the clouds that come and go. Our founders have left us a legacy to see through darker times. And so, we will, because we know it can be done. Thank you!

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] Thank you, Ms. Georgieva, on a wonderful speech with beautiful demonstrations. At this time, I would like to call on the President of the World Bank Group, Mr. Banga to address the Governors. Mr. Banga.

[Applause]

[Ajay Banga] Good morning, everybody. And before I begin, I would like every member who is here from the World Bank Group in the IMF to do me one favor. Wave your hands vigorously. Wave them vigorously. Why are we doing that? You know the butterfly effect? I want the wave from these to be felt around the world of our partnership. That is Kristalina and my commitment to all of you. Together, one plus one is equal to three. And that’s very, very important.

[Applause]

[Ajay Banga] Kristalina, thank you. As I said in my first annual meeting in Marrakesh, from the day I got nominated, you have been a friend and a partner, and may you always, always feel the same about me. Thank you very much. It’s an absolute privilege to stand before all of you. What I think is the convergence of two important moments for the World Bank Group. The first moment is to celebrate what we’ve achieved in these 80 years, as Kristalina talked about, but also reflect on the lessons that we have learned. Secondly, a moment to memorialize a year of change, of hard work, of progress, but most importantly, to prepare for what I think is the next generation of challenges ahead of us. The World Bank, along with the IMF, were born in a moment of global upheaval, Kristalina just talked about it. Established in 1944 during the Bretton Woods conference, it emerged as a response to the widespread devastation caused by World War II. Its original purpose as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development was focused squarely on helping war-torn nations to rebuild. However, even in those early discussions, there was a very spirited debate. By the way, most of the people there were men, but there was one woman. That is a delightful change. Now we have more than one woman involved in all this work. We’ll come to that in a minute. But a spirited debate did emerge. Should the World Bank focus solely on reconstruction, or could it play a broader role in fostering global development? And since then, the world’s needs have continued to evolve, and I think the Bank and its people have evolved with them. We find ourselves today a very similar crossroad where reconstruction is at the forefront due to the wars in Europe, in the Middle East, and in Africa. The lessons from the past have uniquely equipped us to rebuild from today’s conflicts. And while reconstruction is essential, our focus is increasingly turned towards development. And that is where the World Bank’s heart lies, helping nations emerge from less fortunate circumstances to enable people to reach what I think is really important, which is their own full potential. Today, we face a world of unparalleled complexity. Poverty, climate change, conflict, pandemics, these have all got intertwined, and the modern requirements of reconstruction and development call for an institution that is faster, is simpler, and is more impactful. An institution that is capable of addressing the challenges of our time, but at an unprecedented scale. It is a call that was echoed by our shareholders and our clients when I joined 16 months ago, a mandate to work with the enormously dedicated people of this institution to engineer the evolution of our own institution. Together, we have embarked in this journey to build a better Bank and to bring that vision to life. I think we have achieved meaningful improvements across the institution, and we have progressed towards that promise. I’m encouraged that we’re moving in the right direction. I know there are measurable milestones there, streamlined operations, a more impact-oriented institution, and increased lending capacity. So first, we are faster because development delayed is development denied. It’s as simple as that. By streamlining our processes, we can move from planning to action more quickly. We can reduce the time it takes to deliver for the countries we serve for our clients. We have reduced project approval from an average of 19 months to 16, but our real task is to get it to 12 months by June of next year. That’s the target. Now, this is manifesting in reality. It uses the platform approach. In fact, recently, we have approved a set of health projects with similar characteristics in five African countries, each in under 100 days. By the way, two of them in under 30 days. We can get to the 12 months. The question is, another example, in the Pacific region, we approved a correspondence banking support project with seven countries in 10 months. So, that’s our direction of travel. Second, we are simpler because process should never overtake substance. Simplifying our processes helps us to work more efficiently. It helps us to make it easier for our clients, especially those with limited capacity to access our services, and let’s remember for the World Bank Group, that is the majority of our clients. We are delivering a unified Country Partnership Framework. We now have 21 joint country heads representing the entire Group, IBRD, IDA, MIGA, and IFC. It’s still early days, but we can see a shift in a new level of collaboration among management and our staff, and the initial feedback from countries has been very encouraging. We’re in the process of expanding to 20 more countries early next year, and we’re going to keep going. Meanwhile, we have implemented a series of changes you don’t get to see, but our clients and our partners do feel them. By unifying many back-office functions, budget, corporate procurement, real estate, we can deliver services faster and much better function as a single group of people. We’re also working to be a better partner and collaborator with other multilateral development banks, and a few of my friends and colleagues are sitting here. Over the last year, the World Bank has formalized partnerships with five other institutions. We’re working together on everything from the Amazon with the Inter-American Development Bank, to cross-border trade with the Islamic Development Bank, to strengthening health services with the AIIB. Jin

[Liqun] is right here, I can see him sitting here. We will soon finalize an agreement with the Asian Development Bank, basically on mutual reliance. When we do that, I think we will deliver real and new efficiencies for our clients. And as a group of MDBs, we now have an online platform that allows development institutions to share projects for co-financing and discuss them securely and transparently. The idea is to reduce administrative burden, reduce transaction costs, better coordinate financing, and frankly, ultimately, get much better development impact for these countries. In six months, we have 100 projects in this pipeline. The first few are now getting to be financed. More work to do on that one. Third, we are more impact-oriented because the results matter. By prioritizing measurable outcomes, we enhance accountability focus efforts across the Bank. We ensure that our projects drive real change. Our overhauled knowledge bank now has the right people in place leading each vertical for the entire institution. They are focused on bringing our expertise to the creation of Country Partnership Frameworks. They want to help countries overcome capacity challenges to develop bankable projects. We’ve rebuilt our corporate scorecard, moving from 150 items to 22. That simplified set of indicators feeds the cultural shift we are driving, reinforces our institution-wide effort to maximize impact. Last week, we published the baseline results for 20 of those metrics. We’ve shared our measurement formulas going all the way down to projects. Transparency is what we are trying to do. Let shareholders, clients, and taxpayers see the impact we are delivering and where we need to do more. Fourth, we are better organized with more lending capacity. We’re leveraging our financial tools strategically. We can expand our reach, deepen our impact without compromising our financial sustainability or our AAA rating. We’ve aggressively pursued the capital adequacy measures that the G20 Framework laid out. We’ve stretched our existing balance sheet. We’ve secured additional lending capacity at IBRD of over 150 billion over the next 10 years. A combination of new tools and shareholder generosity has done this for us. It includes hybrid capital, portfolio guarantees, two equity loan ratio reductions in these past two years. We’ve built on that foundation by offering new instruments and scaling what we think are known solutions. For example, we’ve introduced 50-year financing for global public goods at no additional cost. To respond to a spectrum of needs, we’ve now begun to offer shorter maturity loans of seven years with lower pricing. We’re looking for ways to scale our various financing instruments that pay for results. These tools create a powerful incentive for outcomes, and frankly, they form now a real part of our toolkit. I was telling Kristalina yesterday, taken together, they added up to nearly half of IBRD and IDA loans last year, these pay for results programs. Financing the pay for results approach and adding the incentive of lower interest rates that we were talking about for global public goods projects led to the launch of the Livable Planet Fund. That’s been capitalized now with 200 million from our income alongside early support from Denmark, from Germany, from Iceland, and Japan. But we’re looking for other governments and philanthropies to chip in. So along with waving your hands, everybody here, please make some noise. We need to get these other people to come in, to build up this Fund. Before the end of the year, we will launch a project preparation facility, funding it from IBRD income to help countries with capacity challenges and take ideas to bankability. We’ve got a new mechanism to enhance the value of callable capital, a request for quite some time that is now ready for shareholders to be able to bring it to life. We’ve taken substantial actions on the pricing of IBRD loans so we can ensure that middle income countries can borrow from us in better terms. Part of that pricing adjustment, crucially, allows small states eligible for climate resilient debt clauses to borrow at our lowest pricing tier. These elements are all part of a sustained effort. The method in the madness is whenever and wherever we see an opportunity to improve our balance sheet, to optimize its use, to help our clients, we will pursue it. Because when more affordable financing is paired with our knowledge, it just creates a really powerful engine for development. That’s the same spirit of doing all we can is ingrained in our IDA replenishment campaign. Over six decades, 36 countries have graduated from IDA. Many of them are now generous donors in their own right. What they do know is three things. The first, the power of IDA, its grants, its deeply concessional loans. Two, its knowledge that’s gained over the years that helps to build capacity for other countries, that transmission line that Kristalina referred to. Third, IDA’s unique capability to multiply every donated dollar three and a half to four times. That gives donors more impact per dollar. It gives clients the ability to take on bigger developmental projects. That’s what’s helped IDA deploy 270 billion dollars in the last 10 years. IDA is just the best deal in development. There is no better one. More than the funds we deploy are the benefits that people derive. Over the past decade, IDA has helped deliver health services to almost 900 million people around the world, connected 117 million people to reliable electricity, and delivered clean water to 94 million people. It’s helped more than 18 million farmers grow more, waste less, and improve their bottom line. Meanwhile, IDA is a life land for the world’s 78 least well-off countries that will spend close to half of their revenues on debt services here, as the Chair was referring to, and much more than they spend on health, education, and infrastructure combined. In that environment, IDA has provided 16 billion dollars over the last four years to the four countries in the Common Framework that the IMF and World Bank have been working on together with the G20. That’s 16 billion of capital and liquidity. Just remember, of those funds, half were pure grants and half were deeply concessional. We are doing all we can to ensure that IDA has the resources it needs to be effective. We believe that a focused, simpler IDA provides the best opportunity to breed stability, security, and advanced development. Over time, IDA’s required measurements have swelled to nearly 1100. What we are trying to do is to reduce them to under 400, giving clients more freedom to prioritize and shape their development to suit their country’s circumstances. We hope that the IDA Pledging Summit that South Korea is hosting in December, we hope then we will to be able to tell the 17 countries that rely on IDA that a well-resourced and simpler IDA has arrived for them. Even with the improvements of this better Bank, of this additional capital that we’re all working on together, we need to find a way to incentivize the private sector to come in as our force multiplier. A lot of people have talked about private sector mobilization. It’s not a panacea, it doesn’t happen in a hurry, but it can be done. The starting point, what we did was to publish proprietary investment data to inspire investor confidence in two ways. First, through GEMs, which is a collaborative platform that all the MDBs share, we have published private sector default publicly. That’s what I wanted to say. I just mixed it up. Private sector default data and recovery rates broken down by country and sector. We shared sovereign default and recovery rate statistics going back 40 years. That data, by the way, is now on Bloomberg Terminals for every private investor to take a look at. Second, IFC published private sector default metrics broken down by credit rating of the borrowers. But data is not going to get us there. Because the requirement, the UN estimates you need 4 trillion dollars every year to get to the Development Goals. Those resources do not exist between public finances, multilateral banks, and philanthropies. We just need the private sector. To engage them, they have to see a very clear return and opportunity for their investments. This private sector lab that we set up, which was created to address the imbalance for renewable energy, has identified five areas of focus. We’re advancing each. We’re looking to deploy lessons to other areas of work. So, what’s the first one? Regulatory and policy certainty. We’re testing our capacity to help governments with this, along with the IMF and the African Development Bank through our initiative to connect 300 million people in Africa to electricity. Second, political risk insurance. We have simplified our guarantees business. We’re being more purposeful about employing it. Already this fiscal year, we’ve issued three times more guarantees than at this point last year. Hiroshi

[Matano] keeps reminding me that three months is not a trend. I think Hiroshi is wrong, but we’ll see, and I’m sure we will be able to go even further once the platform is fully realized. Third, foreign currency risk. We know that developing local capital markets with enough depth and width is the best way to help investors manage that risk. Together with the IMF, that’s what we do. The thing is that takes time. Meanwhile, you’ve got to help countries navigate the challenge who are at varying stages of progress on local capital markets. What are those ideas? A multi-layer FX risk-sharing facility to spread the risk across the private sector, across governments, and the World Bank for longer term projects. We are working on using surplus local currency deposits in commercial banks to lend more in local currency. The IFC has found great success in lending in local currency. Almost a third of their loans are now financed out of local currency. Fourth, first loss and junior equity. We’re developing and will announce in a matter of weeks, the Frontier Opportunities Fund that will incentivize the private sector by taking some of that risk off the table. The initial pool of funding will come from IFC’s net income, but to have the scale we desire, like the Livable Planet Fund, we need donors and philanthropists to come in and aid us. Fifth, creating an asset class. This, to me, is the most promising longer-term idea in the private lab. In other words, originate to distribute, not just securitize, not just synthetic securitization. Really build an asset class in this category. We’re expanding these efforts by forming a new group led by Doug Peterson, the current CEO of S&P. He is stepping down on the first of November, and he’s going to help us to drive a group that will include key players like BlackRock, commercial banks, other institutional investors. Our goal is to move from offering small bespoke loans to larger packaged securities with a rating agency wrap up and create a tradable market in these kinds of assets and loans. Among other things, this will require standardization of loans and documents, both from our side and the receiving countries. I believe this has the greatest potential to unlock large sums of money from the investors like pension funds, insurance companies, and sovereign wealth funds. Attracting more private investment is challenging. As I said at the beginning, it will take time, but we are committed to getting this done. With the reforms we have implemented and others in motion, I think the Group is positioned to take on bigger more ambitious projects, accelerating our mission to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. And that’s why M300, we love our acronyms, but M300 is our goal to deliver electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030 with the African Development Bank. The Rockefeller Foundation joined the effort, and together we are now busy recruiting other philanthropies and investors. Meanwhile, our teams on the ground are developing country by country analysis of the barriers facing each. It’s clear that a mix of distributed mini-grids, better transmission and distribution systems, and properly financed utilities will all be important. We anticipate at least 30 billion dollars of public sector investment will be needed, of which IDA will be critical. That work will be done early next year for the Heads of State Summit in Tanzania. At the Summit, 15 leaders will join our team, along with the representatives from the IMF, from development banks, from philanthropies, and private sector investors to commit to action plans for each country, an example of country platforms that work in actual practice. The IMF has been very generous in stepping in to be thoughtful of how we can use the RST to be helpful for countries who will need the fiscal headroom to do their part of this work. I think we will find a way, like I said, to make one plus one equal to three once again. Our commitment to scale is also very clear on our objective to support countries in delivering affordable quality health care to 1.5 billion people by 2030. As part of that initiative, we’re expanding our focus to help people stay healthy from birth to old age. We’re working to reach them in remote places, and we’re partnering with governments, most importantly, to make health care more affordable. An effort that will be aided by our collaboration with the World Health Organization and with the Japanese government via the Universal Health Coverage Knowledge Hub, which we are launching in Tokyo next year. We’ve got other goals, like those we announced at COP28 that are moving forward. We committed to get to 45% of our total financing at IBRD and IDA to climate, with half going to adaptation by 2025. We are at 44% already in 2024. We will cross that 45 %. Where we have not yet met our goal is an adaptation because the countries who need the most help on adaptation are also the ones with the least capacity to get these done. This is work we have to do more on. We’ve promised to launch 15 country-led programs to cut methane emissions. All are online with monitoring systems now being set up to track progress. We launched climate resilient debt clauses, allowing a two-year pause in debt payments. So far, 12 countries, many in the Caribbean and the Pacific islands, have signed up and more on the pipeline. Complementing these CRDCs, we’ve introduced a rapid response option which allows countries to immediately reallocate a portion of their undisbursed funds in times of crisis. Actually, Kristalina and I have heard back from a number of countries about the value of that rapid response option. Just this week, we set out on two other journeys, agriculture and the point where I started about women and that one lady at Bretton Woods, to empower women. In the coming decades on agriculture, the world is going to need 60% more food to feed 10 billion people. With new tools, with roadblocks of the past like fragmentation, these are giving way to opportunities of tomorrow. To take advantage, we’re launching an ecosystem approach for agribusiness that brings together the World Bank and partners to help smallholder farmers move beyond subsistence farming and integrate into commercial value chains. Smallholder farmers, that’s what we are trying to help here. Underpinning that system is a link from our public sector experience, building farmer associations and our government capacity for our private sector financing and access. We are combining this new way of working with a new level of investment. We’re going to double our agrifinance and agribusiness commitments to 9 billion dollars annually and aim to mobilize billions more from the private sector by 2030. Together, we can reshape the future of food security, of nutrition, of growth, and most importantly, good jobs in the agricultural sector. We’re also working towards a world where women have the power to shape their own destinies, a world where they are not limited by either societal expectations or economic constraints. Our job is to build a ladder of opportunity where each rung represents a step towards greater empowerment. To help women climb the ladder, we are going to provide support at every level of that ladder. Our goal is to build a foundation for that ladder that provides the social safety net of up to 250 million in this period till 2030, a middle step that connects 300 million women to broadband, and the top step that provides access to capital for 80 million women-led businesses by 2030. That’s the ladder we’re going to build. These goals will be achieved with a comprehensive action plan that pulls together regulatory reform, skilling, digital affordability, and partnerships. But our work is far from finished. Ultimately, our focus must be directed towards development projects and tackling the root causes of poverty. Poverty is a state of mind, not just a state of being. The most effective way to defeat poverty is to give people jobs. The best way to put a nail in the coffin of poverty is to give people the hope, the optimism, the dignity of a job. So, let’s turn the page and let’s look to the future. The World Bank Group is poised to embark on the next phase of our mission, and that is to ensure job creation and employment are not the byproduct of our projects, but an explicit aim of what we do. Throughout the history of development, jobs have proven time and again, as I said, to be the best solution, the best and the most lasting panacea for poverty. This dignity, this sense of purpose, this uplifting of the human spirit and condition, that’s what jobs do. They are the key to unlocking potential. They provide a pathway out of poverty. They empower women. They give hope to younger people, which is our future, and they build stronger communities. In the heat, in the heart, everywhere in these world’s emerging economies, a silent revolution is taking place right now. A vast generation of 1.2 billion young people, eager, like we were when we were much younger, some of you are still young, not me, but some of you are still young, eager and brimming with potential. These young people are poised to enter the workforce. And Kristalina has been egging me on and supporting me on this topic from the day I started talking to her. Yet the landscape of opportunity is not expanding at the same pace. We think currently the same countries will produce 420 million jobs. The specter of unemployment looms large, potentially leaving up to 800 million young people without meaningful employment. That will destabilize societies. That will hinder economic growth. The gravity of this challenge just cannot be overstated any more than the other side of this, the potential of this generation to change our world for good. But forecasts are not destiny. You can change it, but you got to work it. And to that end, we have launched a dedicated initiative aimed at generating jobs for young people. Presidents Tharman

[Shanmugaratnam] of Singapore and former President Michelle Bachelet of Chile are leading the effort for us with a group of business leaders, civil society, and academics who met for the first time this week, actually. I believe such a focus is required because jobs are not generated in isolation. They require a marriage between preparing people and preparing opportunities because while talent is everywhere, opportunities are not. This marriage is supported by foundational building blocks that I believe that the World Bank Group is deeply committed to supporting: healthcare, infrastructure, education and skilling, food security, clean air, clean water, the things we do in our development work. We can help build a public sector that employs people, that fosters private sector growth, especially for small businesses which account for 70% of global employment, even in the most developed countries. Without small businesses, we cannot grow employment. That work requires collaboration with partners like you in the IMF, with the other MDBs here, with governments. Tools like our B-READY report are just one resource for providing a background of evidence-based discussions. The work the IMF does in countries with their visits and missions provides the background for evidence-based discussions. In practice, this means we can leverage many of the tools available at the World Bank Group. Our knowledge bank experts can help governments and businesses identify and capitalize on opportunities. With a focus on capacity building, we offer tailored solutions from local capital markets to enhancing education and skilling. Our new knowledge academies, these utilize the best practices to give public officials the skills they need to support the development of their people and the private sector. Our capital and guarantees, the ones that I want Hiroshi to do more of, work in tandem to... Poor Hiroshi. Work in tandem to catalyze investment. This is where each element of the private sector lab work plan will be absolutely crucial. And that result can be magnified with digital technology. Digital public infrastructure allows us to reach more people with essential services like health care, like education, and financial inclusion. Digital technologies break down the barriers. They reduce the power of the incumbent. They create new opportunities is for innovation. They create new opportunities for entrepreneurship. You enhance that with AI and the data revolution, and I believe we have a powerful tailwind in our sales. We have to harness it strategically and use it wisely. But if you do that, we have a powerful tailwind. This is the beginning of a long journey. We are committed to giving the young people growing up today the best chance of a life of true dignity. We’re not naive to the challenge, but because we are faster, because we are simpler, because we are more impact-oriented, the World Bank Group and our people are better able to respond. Through innovative financing, through partnerships, we can pursue much more ambitious programs like connecting 300 million Africans to electricity or developing agribusiness in a way that feeds the world and the economies. With our knowledge and our private sector focus, we can help defeat poverty with jobs. Of course, we can only run in front as fast and as far as our capital allows. We’re building the bigger Bank. We’re pushing to make good on the G20 calls for an ambitious IDA. At some point, we’re going to require an enhanced capital base for IBRD, IFC, and MIGA. From the better Bank to our bigger ambition to our commitment to young people and women, the progress we aspire to achieve demands more from all of us, from all of our talented people at the Bank. It requires that we do not succumb to the tyranny of small things. Most importantly, it requires that this constellation of willing partners, those of us in this room and around the world, that we will work together as collaborators. Our mission demands endurance, unwavering endurance. And insatiable will to keep pushing forward through time, through setbacks, and through challenges. What I hope is that as we move forward, our ideas will lead to action, which in turn will change lives. And that’s why we’re all in this business, to change lives. Thank you for your time. Thank you for joining us on this journey, and thank you for your support and partnership. And, Kristalina, thank you for being you. Thank you very much.

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] Thank you, Mr. Banga, for an insightful speech, giving… A lot of work with the World Bank is doing. Let us now turn to the formal business of the institutions. We have before us the reports and the recommendations of the Joint Procedure Committee. Report 1 covers the business of the Fund. Report 2 covers the business of IBRD, IFC, and IDA. And report 3 concerns matters of common interest to all organizations. We also have the report of the procedure committee of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, MIGA. On the recommendations of the Joint Procedures Committee and the MIGA Procedure Committee, I propose the adoption of these reports and the recommendations contained therein. As there is no objection, the report and the recommendations are adapted.

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] On matters related to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, I ask Mr. Banga as the Chair of the Administrative Council to take the floor again.

[Ajay Banga] Thank you, Chair. The annual meeting of the Exit Administrative Council is now open, and Ms. Mercy Tembon will introduce the items for consideration by the Council. It’s open. It’s on. Okay.

[Mercy Tembon] Thank you, Chair. There are two items on the exit agenda this year that call for the adoption of resolutions by the Council. First, to approve the 2024 ICSID annual report, and second, to adopt the administrative budget for fiscal year 2025. The draft resolutions have been distributed to members earlier. It is proposed that the draft resolutions on the exit 2024 annual report and the exit administrative budget for fiscal year 2025 be adopted.

[Ajay Banga] I take it that the two resolutions are adopted. With that, the 2024 annual meeting of ICSID’s Administrative Council is adjourned.

[Ahmed Munawar] I thank Mr. Banga and Ms. Tembon. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Governors of the Fund and the World Bank Group for the honor to have served as the Chair of this session. I thank you for your support and cooperation. I would also like to thank the former Governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority, His Excellency Ali Hashim, for his contribution as the Chair of the Board of Governors. Allow me also to express my deep appreciation to Ms. Georgieva and Mr. Banga for their leadership of our two institutions. I also recognize the commitment of the staff of the Fund and the World Bank Group for carrying out the vital work of these institutions. I would like to thank Mr. Ogada and Ms. Tembon, as well as the staff of the Secretariat of both of these institutions for the successful organization of the Meetings. I would also like to thank the two Vice Chairs, Governors of Chile and Nigeria, I wish to congratulate the Governors for Cabo Verde, some people say Verde, or Cabo Verde, we will know the correct pronunciation in the future, I’m sure, who has been selected to Chair for the coming year.

[Applause]

[Ahmed Munawar] I wish all the Governors and delegates fruitful and productive Meetings and a safe journey home after the completion of our work. But if you are too tired, you can always come to Maldives. I look forward to seeing you next year in the Washington DC. I hereby adjourn this Meeting of the 2024 Annual Meetings of the Board of Governors of the IMF, IBRD, IDA, IFC, and MIGA.

[Applause]