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Balancing Sustainable Growth and Social Equity: Lessons From Latin America and East Asia
October 9, 2015Lima, Peru (3 PM - 4:30 PM ET)
This event will bring together senior government officials from Latin America and East Asia to discuss how to promote sustainable growth with social equity in the two regions.

This event will bring together senior government officials from Chile, China, Colombia and the Philippines to discuss how to promote sustainable growth with social equity in Latin America and East Asia. The focus will be on priorities in and lessons to be shared between the two regions.

  • Rodrigo Valdés Pulido, Minister of Finance, Chile

    Prior to his appointment he was Chairman of the Board and of the Executive Committee at BancoEstado. Between 2013 and 2014 he was Chief Economist for the Andean Region and Argentina at the investment bank BTG Pactual. Between 2009 and 2012, he worked for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in Washington DC in the Americas department, where he was Head of Mission for the United States of America. Between 2008 and 2009, he was Chief Economist for Latin America at Barclays Bank Capital Inc., in New York, with a focus on Chile, Brazil and Mexico. Between 2002 and 2007, he was Research Division Manager and Chief Economist at the Central Bank of Chile. He has been an advisor to the IMF and the Inter-American Development Bank. He has taught at the Universidad de Chile and Universidad de Santiago, and has written many academic publications on economic policy.

  • Yaobin Shi, Vice Minister of Finance, China

    Yaobin Shi, born in 1958, was appointed Vice Minister of Finance (MoF) in August 2013 to oversee the International Department and Taxation Department. Prior to his appointment as Vice Minister, he was the Director of Hunan Provincial Finance Department for about two years. He was briefly the mayor of Xiangtan City of Hunan Province from 2010-2011. He served as Deputy Director General and Director General of MoF’s Taxation Department from 2005-2010. Shi Yaobin has a PhD degree in economics from MoF’s Finance Research Institute. Shi has strong expertise in accounting, taxation, finance, and macro and microeconomics.

  • Mauricio Cárdenas, Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Colombia

    Minister Cardenas assumed office as Minister of Finance in September 2012. He has been confirmed in this position in 2014 when President Santos was elected to a second term. Mr. Cardenas holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Berkeley and has been a Visiting Scholar at the Center for International Development, Harvard University, as well as Director at the Latin America Initiative, Brookings Institution. For the Government of Colombia, he served as Minister of Mines and Energy (2011-2012), and before that he was Director of the National Planning Department (1999-2000), Minister of Transport (1998-1999) as well as Minister of Economic Development (1994). In the private sector, Mr. Cardenas served as Director of the Higher Education and Development Foundation (Fedesarrollo). Dr. Cardenas is an expert in infrastructure, royalties, and energy, transport and extractive industries.

  • Jose Rene D. Almendras, Cabinet Secretary, The Philippines

    Jose Rene D. Almendras is Secretary to the Cabinet of Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III tasked to effectively integrate and implement the programs of the Aquino Administration and ensure the effective coordination of policies and projects of the different departments and agencies of government. Prior to his appointment as Cabinet Secretary, he served as the Secretary of the Philippine Department of Energy for almost three years. Under his leadership, the Department was ranked as one of the Top 10 Performers, in a survey among 50 government agencies on government performance specifically in ensuring integrity in public service. Secretary Rene had a vast experience in the private sector where he spent most of his career before serving in government under President Aquino. Landing his first CEO position as the President of a bank at the age of 37, he has come to be known for his success in driving the value of the companies he led, and his craft in honing these companies to garner national and international recognitions and awards.

  • Danny Leipziger, Professor and Managing Director, The Growth Dialogue, George Washington University (moderator)

    Danny Leipziger is Professor of International Business and International Affairs, George Washington University, and Managing Director, the Growth Dialogue. He is former Vice President of the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network (2004–09) at the World Bank. Over the course of his 28-year career at the World Bank, he has held management positions in the East Asia Region and the Latin America and Caribbean Region as well as in the World Bank Institute. Prior to joining the Bank, Dr. Leipziger served in senior positions at the U.S. Agency for International Development and the U.S. Department of State. He also has been a Vice Chair of the independent Commission on Growth and Development (2006-2010). He has published widely in the areas of development economics and finance, industrial policy, and banking, including books on Korea, Chile, and East Asia and recent volumes Globalization and Growth (with Michael Spence) and Stuck in the Middle (with Antonio Estache) and Ascent after Decline: Regrowing Global Economies after the Great Recession (with Otaviano Canuto). He has published more than 40 articles in refereed journals on economic development and finance. He is a frequent contributor to the Financial Times. He has written for Project Syndicate, and is often called upon by the international media as a commentator on global economic issues.

  • Sri Mulyani Indrawati Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, World Bank

    As Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Sri Mulyani Indrawati is responsible for the institution’s operations in all regions. She also oversees the new global practices and cross-cutting solution areas which bring together the best expertise from across the Bank Group and from partners to help tackle the most complex development challenges. In addition, she oversees other administrative vice presidencies and functions, including the Integrity Vice Presidency, Sanctions Board Secretariat and the Office of Evaluation and Suspension. Ms. Indrawati joined the World Bank in June 2010. Previously she served as Indonesia’s minister of finance in addition to being the coordinating minister of economic affairs. She led the Indonesian National Development Planning Agency prior to her position as Finance Minister. Her earlier positions include Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund, faculty member at the University of Indonesia and Visiting Professor at the Andrew Young School of Public Policy at Georgia State University. Ms. Indrawati holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Illinois and a B.A. in economics from the University of Indonesia.

  • Axel van Trotsenburg, Vice President for East Asia and Pacific, World Bank

    Axel van Trotsenburg assumed the role of World Bank East Asia and Pacific Regional Vice President on February 1, 2013. He oversees a portfolio of over $30 billion in loans, grants, credits and trust funds, coordinating and supervising the activities of more than 1,000 staff. Mr. van Trotsenburg leads the World Bank’s strategy in the region which supports countries by addressing four shared challenges: natural disasters; poverty and equality; infrastructure and urbanization; and making governments work for people. Despite the region's success in reducing poverty, about a half billion people are still living on less than $2 a day. The Bank’s goal is to help countries improve the lives of the poor and vulnerable by delivering innovative development solutions and results on the ground.

  • Jorge Familiar Vice President, World Bank, Latin America and Caribbean

    Jorge Familiar, a Mexican national, is the Vice President of the World Bank for Latin America and the Caribbean since May 1, 2014. He is the first Latin American to be appointed to that position in the last 30 years. Eradicating extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity through the creation of opportunities for all Latin Americans are at the core of his vision for the Region. Familiar leads relations with 31 Latin American and Caribbean countries through a portfolio of ongoing projects, technical assistance and grants worth more than US$30 billion. Traditionally, the Region has represented slightly above 30 percent of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (IBRD) —the Group window for middle -income countries— total lending portfolio.
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