Annual Meetings    Boards of Governors World Bank Group International Monetary Fund WASHINGTON, D.C.	1999 Annual Meetings Home Bank Home Fund Home
Program Schedule Tuesday, September 28, 1999    Last updated September 3, 1999

	10:00-1:00	Annual Meetings Opening Plenary Session
	2:00-3:30	The New Global Education Industry Private investment in the trillion-dollar global education industry is growing rapidly in industrial, developing and transitional countries. The growth of private, for-profit companies in this industry raises many challenges and questions including: What kinds of companies are operating in the global education industry? How are some leading education companies performing financially, and in terms of efficiency and innovation? How do education companies raise their capital for expansion and upgrading? How can they help to increase educational opportunities cost-effectively? What opportunities are opening up for new entrants in the education marketplace? Discussion Leaders Miguel A. Gómez Barnola, Director, Centro de Planeación Educativa, Mexico C.N. Madhusudan, President of Strategic Alliances, National Institute of Information Technology, USA Michael T. Moe, CFA, Director of Global Growth Stock Research, Merrill Lynch, USA Moderator Peter L. Woicke, Executive Vice President, International Finance Corporation, World Bank
	2:00-3:30	Project Finance in the Post-Crisis World Project finance soared in developing countries in the decade to 1997 stimulated by the benefits of globalization and major domestic policy reforms – but then took a beating during the global financial crisis of 1997/98. Since project finance relies on the revenues and assets of a project itself rather than guarantees for repayment, investments are structured around an appraisal of the risks and potential returns, as well as on burden sharing. Panelists will examine the risks, costs and rewards of project finance, in the context of recent lessons learned. What are the main risks facing project finance structuring in developing countries? Is project finance an appropriate means of attracting finance into frontier markets? How can risks be effectively mitigated, and how can the benefits of project finance be broadened in more risky environments? Discussion Leaders Carlos Bühler, Chief Executive Officer, Juan Minetti, S.A., Argentina Eugene W. Goodwillie, Jr., Partner, White & Case, New York, USA A.M. Kloosterman, Managing Director, ABN-AMRO Bank, Netherlands Adebayo O. Ogunlesi, Managing Director, Credit Suisse First Boston, USA David Scholey, Senior Adviser, Warburg Dillon Read, United Kingdom Eric Siegel, Executive Vice President, Export Development Corporation, Canada Moderator To Be Announced
	2:00-3:30	Labor Standards: Complementing Public Standards With Market-Driven Initiatives* Labor standards, the rules and norms that govern working conditions and industrial relations are an important issue for governments, private employers, workers and international organizations. A set of core labor standards is now internationally recognized through the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. This session will examine these "public standards" and how they can be complemented by private/market-based standards, ranging from corporate benchmarking, codes of conduct, and voluntary enforcement of industry standards to consumer activism through labeling initiatives. How widely are core labor standards being adopted, and what is the experience in terms of their economic impact? What is the record of the myriad of private benchmarking, codes of conduct and other market-driven initiatives in complementing public standards? How should governments support these efforts? If multinationals lead the benchmarking efforts, how will best practice codes of conduct diffuse to local industries? To what degree would consumers be prepared to support best labor practice, even when it raises their cost? Discussion Leaders Charles Sabel, Professor, Columbia University School of Law, USA Ingrid Schullstrom, Quality & Environment Manager, Hennes & Mauritz, Sweden Janelle M. Diller, Legal Officer, Office of the Legal Adviser of the International Labour Office, Switzerland Moderator Norma Samaniego, Director, Santa Fè Consultores, Mexico
	4:00-5:30	Feast or Famine: The Impact of Biotechnology on Global Food Markets and Trade in the Next Millennium As a result of the "Green Revolution", it was believed we had the means to feed the world's population. However, aspects of this revolution have proven to be environmentally unsustainable. In the first quarter of the next millennium, the international community will require a quantum leap in agricultural production: an additional 2 billion people will have to be fed; while increasingly affluent populations will demand more sophisticated foodstuffs. This session will examine ways to balance these competing demands on agricultural production, and whether biotechnology is a sufficient response. Can biotechnology offer solutions to the world's food problems? What are the risks? How can the poor participate in a liberalized agricultural trade? What will the global "food chain" look like in the next millennium? Discussion Leaders William Kirk, President, DuPont Agricultural Enterprise, USA Bruce Rohde, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, ConAgra, Inc., USA Moderator To Be Announced
	4:00-5:30	Beyond Debt Relief: Making the Link to Poverty Reduction* On the eve of the millennium, the international community has embraced debt relief for the world’s poorest, most heavily indebted countries as a leading development challenge. An ongoing dialogue on how to expand the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, involving governments, international development institutions, the religious community and civil society, has provided a useful framework to identify opportunities for deepening, widening and accelerating the debt relief processes now in place, and most importantly, ensuring that debt relief has a real impact on the lives of the poor. This issue is being studied closely by the World Bank and IMF and remains a key element of future debt reduction planning for leaders from both creditor and debtor governments. What are the key issues with respect to policy performance, program design and pacing, and how best can they be addressed? What are the challenges of linking debt relief more firmly to poverty reduction? Discussion Leaders Anthony Boote, Assistant Director, Official Financing Operations Division – Policy, Development and Review Department, International Monetary Fund Alex Brummer, Senior Finance Editor, The Guardian Mauricio Diaz Burdett , Honduras Gabriela Nuñez de Reyes, Minister of Finance, Honduras Gerald Ssendaula, Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Uganda Axel Van Trotsenburg, Manager, Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Unit, World Bank Moderator To Be Announced
	4:00-5:30	Reality Versus Alarm: Y2K As A Lesson For Global Business Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) are now the prerequisite for international business and finance, and an imperative to advancing economic and social development. Legacy systems potentially affected by the Year 2000 problem permeate every sector of the global economy. Despite the global alarms sounded to address the problem, perceived and actual disruptions in economic continuity may precipitate capital flight from international investments and stall development projects. Levels of readiness vary widely, and the Y2K problem has awakened the world to our enormous economic dependence on information technologies. What sectors in the global economy are most at risk from Y2K disruptions? What is being done to moderate disruptions and prepare for contingencies? What are the lessons learned from the Y2K experience? What opportunities are presented for future business and government operations? Discussion Leaders E. Jeffrey Berg, Director Y2K Program, Salomon Smith Barney, Inc., USA Flemming Larsen, Deputy Director, Research Department, International Monetary Fund Stephen R. Malphrus, Director of Management, Federal Reserve Board, USA Walter Richter, Chief, International Telecommunication Union Stuart Umpleby, Director, Research Program in Social & Organizational Learning and Professor at George Washington University, USA Moderator To Be Announced
		* Public Policy Forum
		Please note that Speakers are confirmed as of August 31, 1999 but still subject to change.