Day 1: June 26
9:00 - 9:05 – Introduction
- Lilia Razlog, DMF Program Manager, World Bank Group
9:05 - 10:10 – Fireside Chat: Financing Development in a Volatile World
- Pablo Saavedra, Prosperity Vice President, World Bank Group
- William Roos, Assistant Secretary, Treasury, Ministry of Finance, France
10:10 - 10:20 – Group photo
10:20 - 10:30 – Coffee Break
10:30 - 11:45 – Panel Discussion | Addressing today’s debt challenges: Boosting liquidity support, improving debt workouts
This session sets the stage for the conference by providing a general discussion on current debt challenges. We have seen significant progress in some debt issues; however, many challenges remain ahead: high risk of debt distress, high cost of funding, significant debt services for 2025/26 and increasing political uncertainty.
- Moderator: Pablo Saavedra, Prosperity Vice President, World Bank Group
Panelists:
- Carmen Reinhart, International Financial System Professor, Harvard Kennedy School
- Ceyla Pazarbasioglu, Director, International Monetary Fund
- Shanti Bobin, Deputy Assistant Secretary, French Treasury
- Sonja Gibbs, Managing Director, Institute of International Finance
11:45 - 13:00 – Panel Discussion | Assessing and Maintaining Debt Sustainability during Uncertain Times
The number of countries facing elevated risks of debt distress remains high. What are the drivers (fiscal, external, climate, debt management, among others)? What is the direction of the review of the LIC DSF and how it can enhance early signals and identify risks (climate, domestic debt)? How can borrowers and creditors proactively manage debt to avoid future crises?
- Moderator: William Roos, Assistant Secretary, Treasury, Ministry of Finance, France
Panelists:
- Manuela Francisco, Global Director, World Bank Group
- Allison Holland, Assistant Director, International Monetary Fund
- Felix Nkulukusa, Secretary to the Treasury, Zambia
- Anne-Laure Kiechel, CEO, Global Sovereign Advisory
13:00 - 14:30 – Lunch
14:30 - 15:45 – Panel Discussion | Debt for development swaps and credit-enhanced debt instruments: When are they good debt management and good development finance tools?
This panel will discuss the role of debt for development swaps and credit-enhanced debt instruments in navigating a challenging financing environment and will discuss recent efforts and experiences by actors involved. Debt for development swaps (“debt swaps”) are agreements between a government and one or more of its creditors to replace sovereign debt with one or more liabilities that entail a spending commitment over time towards a development goal. Such transactions have been implemented for decades, but are often complex, administratively costly, and heavily reliant on donor subsidies.
- Moderator: David Savage, Manager, MIGA World Bank Group
Panelists:
- Ugo Panizza, Professor of Economics, Geneva Graduate Institute.
- Lanciné Diaby, General Director of Financing, Ministry of Finance and Budget, Côte d'Ivoire
- Marta Mulas, Senior Advisor for External Debt and International Financing, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprises, Spain
- Hauke Maas, Debt policy team lead, Global Policy Group, GIZ, Germany
15:45 - 16:00 – Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:15 – Panel Discussion | Building Confidence: Transparency in Debt Management
This panel will discuss the on-going efforts in improving the accuracy and expanding the scope of debt data collection and dissemination, detailing responsibilities and operational faced by the three main actors involved: borrowers, lenders and IFIs. In 2021, the World Bank published a comprehensive report which provided an in-depth assessment of public debt transparency in low-income countries. Since then, the international community has made efforts in advancing debt transparency. As a result, the number of LICs that do not publish any debt report has been reduced to 20% and the sectoral and instrument coverage of statistics and DSAs has been widened in several countries. A new report on this topic will be presented in this panel.
- Moderator: Luca Bandiera, Lead Economist, World Bank Group
Panelists:
- Anna Gelpern, Professor of Law and International Finance, Georgetown University Law Center
- Erwin Ginting, Deputy Director for Development of Budget Financing Management, Ministry of Finance, Indonesia
- Michael Sarty, Senior Economist, Department of Finance, Canada
- Tom Katzenbach, Deputy Director of the Debt Management Office, US Treasury Department
17:15 - 18:15 – Cocktail Reception
* End of program for day 1 *