UAE heads Arab Group at semi-annual IMF and World Bank meetings in Washington

WASHINGTON, 20th April, 2015 (WAM) -- The UAE has participated in the semi-annual International Monetary Fund, IMF, and World Bank, WB, meetings, which took place from 17th-19th April in Washington, with a delegation headed by Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs. The delegation also attended the ministerial meeting with the President of the World Bank Group. Al Tayer was heading the Arab Group at meetings, which covered 10 elements on global economic growth, including policies to promote balanced and sustainable growth, fiscal policies, monetary policies, financial sector policies, structural reforms, IMF loans and surveillance, frameworks and early warning systems as well as discussions on ways to face global challenges by promoting growth and crisis management. In his speech on behalf of the Arab group at the International Monetary Fund, Al-Tayer said that the global recovery is picking up in most large economies but it remains moderate and uneven across major economies and regions. He said, "The fund’s outlook for Advanced Economies, AE, is improving, while growth in Emerging Market and Developing Economies, EMDCs, is downgraded compared to others. The fund’s outlook is clouded by a number of forces, including investment and below target inflation in AE, rising market volatility, and some lingering crisis legacies." He referred to the decline in oil prices and its positive impact on global growth in terms of reducing inflation, helping to create fiscal space, and improving the balance of payments of oil importing countries. However, a prolonged period of low growth, or disinflation, underscores the need for policy actions to support productivity and aggregate supply. Through his speech, he highlighted the Arab group’s appreciation of the key messages of the Managing Director’s Global Policy Agenda of the IMF, which gives prominence to actions that support durable growth by improving the effectiveness of demand stimulus, implementing structural reforms, and ensuring financial stability. In addition, he confirmed the Arab group’s support for the continuation of monetary accommodation by the ECB and in Japan, while the authorities remain vigilant to the build-up of financial risks and deploy macro prudential tools, as needed. Speaking of the Arab group’s countries, UAE Minister of State for Financial Affairs pointed out that the Member States concur with the assessment of a pick-up in overall growth during the current year. The GCC countries continue to exhibit robust growth in the nonoil sector, especially with these countries pursuing strategies to rebalance growth towards more productive public spending and to strengthen the non-oil fiscal balances to preserve the oil wealth for future generations. As for oil importers within the Arab’s group, Al-Tayer mentioned that the average growth is projected to rise in 2015 on the back of confidence gains, higher demand from trading partners and structural reforms that are nurturing competitiveness and foreign direct investment. He said that Future Fund analysis and policy advice could provide deeper country-specific analysis of policy options that balance fiscal sustainability and job-creating growth. He also stressed the Arab group’s commitment to the fund’s support for Arab Countries in Transition (ACTs) and substantial donor support from the region within the quota reform in the IMF process, taking into consideration that dynamic emerging and developing countries’ in favour should not come at the expense of other emerging markets and developing countries. Al-Tayer concluded his speech with emphasis on the importance of the fund’s continued contribution to the post-2015 development agenda. He asked the Fund to adopt a new policy to achieve staff diversity and intensify efforts to address the under-representation of Arab nationalities, particularly at the level of managers and high level professionals. The Arab Group at the IMF includes the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Egypt, Qatar, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Syria, and the Maldives. The Minister of State also participated in the Development Committee of the World Bank meeting, which discussed international development and ways to support it, in addition to the World Bank Group’s plans to promote economic development and poverty eradication in developing countries. Al Tayer attended the ministerial meeting which took place on 17th April, in the presence of Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations, along with Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund. The meeting highlighted efforts to reduce harmful emissions and put in place policies to finance environmental protection projects for private and public sectors. Participants also discussed innovative methods for financing purposes and the World Bank and IMF views on carbon pricing and reducing energy subsidies to protect against climate change. The UN Secretary-General advised the Ministers of Finance to adopt financial policies to support the environment and reduce emissions. He also encouraged attendees to achieve the goal of saving US$100 billion to fund environmental programmes and support the Green Climate Fund with US$10 billion. The meeting also highlighted the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that will be launched at the Paris Conference in December this year. It will also highlight financing policies and domestic and foreign investment with the private sector, and achieving "zero" rate of emissions before 2100. Obaid Humaid Al Tayer shed light on key elements, including introducing the UAE’s commitment to adopt and implement sustainable development programmes and renewable energy projects, and the UAE’s rank as the world’s largest donor country of official development assistance for two consecutive years 2013-2014 (1.17 percent of its gross national income). Al Tayer also emphasised the need for the World Bank Group to commit to supporting special projects related to education, health, infrastructure, and energy in order to ensure sustainable development, create job opportunities and aid in poverty eradication in Arab countries, as well as the importance of supporting organisations under the World Bank Group for small and medium projects. He also highlighted the UAE’s contributions to the World Bank’s capital in 2010, which amounted to US$135.9 million, and indicated the UAE’s approval to increase its contribution in 2015, by offering US$220.882 million. – Emirates News Agency, WAM – http://www.wam.ae/en/news/economics/1395279448995.html