The 14th AFD International Research Conference on Development, The Visible Hand: Development Banks in Transition will take place in the framework of the Finance in Common Summit, the first global meeting of all public development banks. The Academic Days will take place from 3 to 5 November 2020, followed by the Open Discussion Days on 9 and 10 November 2020. In the context of the severe crisis affecting the world following the Covid-19 disruption, this new edition will focus on development banks’ key contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to paving the way to rebuild our economic systems in a more responsible and sustainable way.
It is organized with the academic support of the lnstitute of New Structural Economics at Peking University (INSE), the lnstitute for Sustainable Development and lnternational Relations (lDDRl) and of the Foundation for Studies and Research on International Development (FERDI).
The 14th AFD International Research Conference on Development will start with three Academic Days that will take place from 3 to 5 November 2020. This online workshop will be dedicated to researchers and experts from academia, think tanks and international organizations.
The researchers involved in the International Research Initiative on Public Development Banks (PDBs) working groups and pilot research program will present their findings. This network of thematically-focused open working groups, involving 28 researchers from 20 institutions across the globe, was launched by the Institute of New Structural Economics (INSE) at Peking University, and sponsored by the Agence française de développement (AFD), Ford Foundation, and the International Development Finance Club (IDFC).
In total 15 research papers will be discussed, covering the five key challenges exposed by the research program.
On 9 and 10 November, the Open Discussion Days will gather researchers, Public Development Banks representatives and other stakeholders to reflect, in the light of the current crisis, on the key role development banks could play for building an efficient global, development-oriented finance architecture.
The online public conference will aim to deliver concrete policy recommendations to decision-makers, on how to scale up development banks’ potential at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and pave the way forward to a more responsible and sustainable recovery of our economic systems. The International Research Initiative on Public Development Banks (PDBs) working groups will present their work and findings.
High-level speakers will include senior officials from development banks, in particular members of the International Development Finance Club (IDFC) and the World Federation of Development Finance Institutions (WFDFI), as well as renowned economists and researchers. We are proud to count Nobel Prize in Economics Joseph Stiglitz, and Masood Ahmed, chief executive officer of the CGDev as our distinguished keynote speakers.
