President of NBG and Minister of Finance participate in annual meetings of IMF and WBG
By Nika Gamtsemlidze
Monday, October 21
The first meeting of the President of the National Bank of Georgia and the Minister of Finance, Ivane Machavariani was held with the Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Tao Zhang.
During the meeting, the sides discussed the macroeconomic situation of the country, the progress of the economic program of Georgia supported by the International Monetary Fund, as well as the issues of IMF technical assistance.
According to Tao Zhang, despite the current challenges, the Georgian authorities are successfully implementing reforms that reduce the country's vulnerability to external factors and ensure sustainable economic growth.
Gvenetadze gave a silver collector coin as a present to the deputy managing director. The coin was issued to celebrate the 100 years of National Bank.
During the annual meetings, Gvenetadze and Minister of Finance also met with the Middle East and Central Asia Department Director of the International Monetary Fund, Jihad Azour. In addition, Koba Gvenetadze participated in the G30 International Banking Seminar and met with representatives of major investment companies. The meeting was also held with representatives of the IMF Monetary and Credit Markets Department and the US Treasury.
Gvenetadze participated in a roundtable discussion organized by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the IFC Sustainable Banking Network (SBN) in Washington, DC.
The high-level meeting was chaired by Georgina Baker, Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe and Central Asia. It was attended by the Governors of the central banks of different countries, representatives of international organizations and the financial sector.
Discussions focused on the progress of emerging markets in terms of sustainable financing and the publication of the annual SBN Global and Member States individual reports. Participants discussed current challenges in terms of sustainable funding development and shared the international experience.
The President of the National Bank spoke about the importance of environmental, social and governance issues not only for financial stability but also for the sustainable development of the country.
"The number of central banks that integrate environmental, social and governance issues into their business is increasing day by day. The National Bank has been working in this direction since 2017, after joining SBN. During this time, significant steps have been taken in cooperation with international organizations to support this direction ", said Gvenetadze.
According to the National Bank of Georgia, they are actively working to support the development of a sustainable financing framework. In 2019, the National Bank published Sustainable Financing Guide detailing activities planned in this area. To raise awareness of sustainable financing and share international experience, the National Bank hosted a Sustainable Financing Workshop last year in collaboration with IFC. A similar event is planned this year.
The Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund bring together central bankers, ministers of finance and development, parliamentarians, private sector executives, representatives from civil society organizations and academics every year to discuss of global concern.