October 22, 2021: The 2021 World Bank Group – IMF Annual Meetings

Looking back on last week's 2021 World Bank Group - International Monetary Fund Annual Meetings, I would here like to quickly review some of my related engagements:

Thursday, September 30

• Scene-Setter Speech: "Development in a Time of Upheaval" in Sudan

• Annual Meetings 2021: Media Roundtable

• International Debt Statistics 2022

• Annual Meetings 2021: Growth in a Time of Crisis

• G24 Meeting of Ministers and Governors

Tuesday, October 12

• Remarks to the COP 15 Conference on Biodiversity

• Global Parliamentary Forum Townhall

• Annual Meetings 2021: CSO Town Hall

• Annual Meetings 2021: The Road to an Inclusive Recovery

Wednesday, October 13

• Annual Meetings 2021: Opening Press Conference

• Annual Meetings 2021: G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' Meetings

Thursday, October 14

• Annual Meetings 2021: IMFC Meetings

• Annual Meetings 2021: "Making Climate Action Count"

• Meeting with the Bretton Woods Committee

Friday, October 15

• Remarks to the Development Committee

• Annual Meetings 2021: "Unleashing Global Trade to Support Economic Growth"

Monday, October 18

• Meeting With the Arab Governors of the World Bank Group

Tuesday, October 19

• Human Capital Project Conclave 2021

Thursday, October 21

• Annual Meetings 2021: "Tackling Financial Fragility for an Equitable Recovery"

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During our meetings, I was pleased to meet with President Ivan Duque of Colombia, Secretary Rogelio Ramírez de la O of Mexico, Secretary Janet Yellen and Special Envoy John Kerry of the United States, Deputy Minister Masato Kanda of Japan, Deputy Prime Minister Nam-Ki Hong of the Republic of Korea (ROK), Minister Bruno Le Maire of France, Minister Paulo Guedes of Brazil, Minister Sri Mulyani of Indonesia,  Minister Lütfi Elvan of Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk and Ambassador Anatoly Antonov of Russia, Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masatsugu Asakawa, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of India, MP Vicky Ford of the United Kingdom, UN Special Envoy Mark Carney, Minister Luhut Pandjaitan of Indonesia, Prime Minister Patrick Achi of Côte d'Ivoire, Director General Rafael Grossi of the IAEA, and several other officials and leaders. My thanks to all who attended our meetings.

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Throughout this year's Annual Meetings, I have stressed the urgency of the issues we face.

It is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a stark reversal of development gains. Development is going backwards on poverty, median income, education, nutrition, security and many other areas.

As countries work to recover, the World Bank Group's International Development Association (IDA) provides a huge boost to growth and development - an ambitious and successful IDA20 replenishment can do much to help better outcomes for countries around the world, and I am looking forward to the final IDA20 replenishment round in Tokyo this December.

To avoid a "lost decade" it is urgent that we act now to address the most pressing issues affecting global inequality: debt, vaccines, and climate. Over the next few weeks, I look forward to attending the G20 and COP26 summits for further discussions on these important issues.

This post was originally published on LinkedIn.