Advancing Asia Conference

Welcoming Remarks: Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Born in Paris in 1956, Christine Lagarde completed high school in Le Havre and attended Holton Arms School in Bethesda (Maryland, USA). She then graduated from law school at University Paris X, and obtained a Master’s degree from the Political Science Institute in Aix en Provence.

After being admitted as a lawyer to the Paris Bar, Christine Lagarde joined the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie as an associate, specializing in Labor, Anti-trust, and Mergers & Acquisitions. A member of the Executive Committee of the Firm in 1995, Christine Lagarde became the Chairman of the Global Executive Committee of Baker & McKenzie in 1999, and subsequently Chairman of the Global Strategic Committee in 2004.

Christine Lagarde joined the French government in June 2005 as Minister for Foreign Trade. After a brief stint as Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, in June 2007 she became the first woman to hold the post of Finance and Economy Minister of a G-7 country. From July to December 2008, she also chaired the ECOFIN Council, which brings together Economics and Finance Ministers of the European Union, and helped fostering international policies related to financial supervision and regulation and strengthening global economic governance. As Chairman of the G-20 when France took over its presidency for the year 2011, she set in motion a wide-ranging work agenda on the reform of the international monetary system.

On July 5, 2011, Christine Lagarde became the eleventh Managing Director of the IMF, and the first woman to hold that position. On February 19, 2016, the IMF Executive Board selected her to serve as IMF Managing Director for a second five-year term starting on July 5, 2016.

Christine Lagarde was named Officier in the Légion d'honneur in April 2012.

A former member of the French national team for synchronized swimming, Christine Lagarde is the mother of two sons.

Introduction: H.E. Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs and Information and Broadcasting, India

Moderator: Subir Gokarn, Executive Director for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Sri Lanka, International Monetary Fund

Executive Director for: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Sri Lanka. Assumed Duties: 1st December, 2015. National of: India. Marital Status: Married. Prior to joining the IMF, Mr. Gokarn was Senior Fellow and Director of Research at the Brookings Institution India Center (2013-2015).

Earlier, he was Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (2009-12), Chief Economist of Standard & Poor’s Asia-Pacific (2007-09), Executive Director and Chief Economist of CRISIL (2002-07), Chief Economist at the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), New Delhi (2000-2002) and Associate Professor at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai (1991-2000).

He served a two-year term as member of the National Security Advisory Board (2013-15). He is currently a Member of the Expenditure Management Commission set up by the Government of India. He was also chairman of a task force mandated with setting up a Financial Data Management Centre (2014-15).

He received a doctorate in Economics from Case Western Reserve University, USA in 1989.

Opening Session

Opening Remarks: Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Keynote Address: H.E. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India

Moderator: Changyong Rhee, Director, IMF Asia and Pacific Department

Ceremony for South Asia Training and Technical Assistance Center:

H.E. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India

H.E. Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs and Information and Broadcasting, India

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Coffee Break

Session 1: Asian Growth Models

Over the past 15 years, economies in Asia have become stronger, and social progress and poverty reduction have seen significant improvements. This session will examine recent performance and sources of resilience, but also address the main social and economic challenges facing the region going forward, and consider ways that economic policy can advance employment growth and social progress more widely. Key issues for discussion include slowing potential growth, rising debt, infrastructure bottlenecks, regional integration, and the role of trade and other structural reforms in boosting output and macroeconomic resilience.

Moderator:

Marcus Brauchli, North Base Media and former Executive Editor of Washington Post

Panelists:

Arvind Subramanian, Chief Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance, India

Dr. Arvind Subramanian currently serves as the chief economic advisor to the ministry of finance, government of India. He is on leave from his position as the Dennis Weatherstone Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Dr. Subramanian has also served as senior fellow at the Center for Global Development. He was assistant director in the Research Department of the International Monetary Fund. He served at the GATT (1988–92) during the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations and taught at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government (1999–2000) and at Johns Hopkins’ School for Advanced International Studies (2008–10).

His book Eclipse: Living in the Shadow of China’s Economic Dominance was published in September 2011, and he is coauthor of Who Needs to Open the Capital Account? (2012). His book India’s Turn: Understanding the Economic Transformation was published in 2008 by Oxford University Press. Foreign Policy magazine has named him as one of the world’s top 100 global thinkers in 2011.

He has written on growth, trade, development, institutions, aid, oil, India, Africa, and the World Trade Organization. He has published widely in academic and other journals, including the American Economic Review (Papers and Proceedings), Review of Economics and Statistics, Journal of International Economics, Journal of Monetary Economics, Journal of Public Economics, Journal of Economic Growth, Journal of Development Economics, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Oxford Review of Economic Policy, International Monetary Fund Staff Papers, Foreign Affairs, World Economy, and Economic and Political Weekly.

He obtained his undergraduate degree from St. Stephens College, Delhi; his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management at Ahmedabad, India; and his M. Phil. and D. Phil. from the University of Oxford, UK.

Martin Wolf, Chief Economics Commentator, Financial Times

Martin Wolf is the associate editor and chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, London. Wolf attended University College School and in 1967 entered Corpus Christi College at Oxford University for his undergraduate studies.

He has been a forum fellow at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos since 1999 and a member of its International Media Council since 2006. He was made a Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, by Nottingham University in July 2006. He was made a Doctor of Science (Economics) of London University, honoris causa, by the London School of Economics in December 2006. He was a member of the UK government's Independent Commission on Banking in 2010-2011. Martin's most recent publications are Why Globalization Works and Fixing Global Finance. Prospect magazine described him as “the Anglosphere’s most influential finance journalist”.

Wolf is a regular participant in the annual Bilderberg meetings of politicians and bankers. He is visiting fellow of Nuffield College, Oxford, a special Professor at the University of Nottingham and an honorary fellow of the Oxford Institute for Economic Policy. He has been a forum fellow at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos since 1999. Wolf has been named in the top 100 lists of global thinkers by Prospect and by Foreign Policy magazine. In 2012, he received the Ischia International Journalist Award. Martin Wolf is married to Alison Wolf.

Eisuke Sakakibara, former vice-Minister of Finance, Japan

Eisuke Sakakibara has been Professor at Aoyama-Gakuin University in Tokyo since April 2010. Prior to that he held positions as Professor at Waseida and Keio Universities between 1999 and 2010.

Between 1997 and1999, he served as Japan's Vice Minister of Finance and International Affairs, earning the sobriquet Mr. Yen because of his influence over the currency markets. He is renowned as a key advisor to The Democratic Party of Japan. He also served as a President, Institute for Indian Economic Studies. Professor Sakakibara has held many positions with the government of Japan. He joined Japan's Ministry of Finance in 1965. After serving as an economist at the International Monetary Fund from 1971 to 1975, he returned to the Ministry of Finance as Deputy Director of the First Insurance Division. In 1981, he was appointed Director of Planning and Research at the International Finance Bureau. Then, between 1983 and 1985, he served as Special Adviser to the President of the Japan Center for International Finance. Professor Sakakibara has also served as Associate Professor of Economics in the Institute for Policy Science at Saitama University and as Visiting Associate Professor of Economics, in the Economics Department at Harvard University. He is the recipient of numerous awards. Born in 1941, Professor Sakakibara obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Tokyo and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan. Between 1997 and1999, he served as Japan's Vice Minister of Finance and International Affairs, earning the sobriquet Mr. Yen because of his influence over the currency markets.

Caroline Atkinson, Head of Global Public Policy at Google

Zhongxia Jin, Executive Director for China, International Monetary Fund

Jin Zhongxia is the Executive Director for China at the International Monetary Fund since 2015. Prior to joining the Fund, he held various positions in the People’s Bank of China in Beijing, including as Director-General of the Research Institute. His major research included interest rate liberalization and monetary policy transmission, internationalization of the RMB, and dynamic BOP management and its implications for China. As Deputy Director-General of the Monetary Policy Department, he was responsible for open market operations, and as Deputy Director-General of the International Department, he was responsible for G20 matters, IMF affairs, and regional monetary cooperation. He participated in the negotiations for establishing the 10+3 foreign exchange reserve pooling system and for the signing of the currency swap arrangement between China and other countries after the financial crises.

Zhongxia is the recipient of the State Council’s Government Special Award for Outstanding Research in 2012 for his work on the equilibrium exchange rate during China’s transition period. He was General Secretary for the China Financial Accounting Association in 2013‒14, and has been a Member of the China Finance 40 Forum since 2012. His recent publications include: China and G20 (2014); and Future Path of Globalization: International Trade and Investment Rules Under Restructuring.

Zhongxia holds a PhD in International Finance from the University of Hawaii; and an MA in Macroeconomic Management and BA in International Economics from Peking University.

Session 2: Income Inequality, Demographic Change, and Gender

A decade of strong economic growth in Asia has led to rising employment and a fall in wage inequality. Still, millions of people in Asia continue to live in poverty, labor force participation by women and youth remain low in many countries, and opportunities wrought by favorable population demographics are yet to be fully garnered. The international community is coming together in late 2015 to adopt a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), building on the progress made under the Millennium Development Goals, and agree on options for sustainably financing the SDGs. This session will discuss these challenges and consider the need for second-generation reforms to underpin recent progress toward building a shared prosperity.

Moderator:

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Panelists:

Milwida Guevara, CEO, Synergeia Foundation, Philippines

Dr. Milwida M. Guevara is President and CEO of Synergeia Foundation, a non-profit corporation that works with local governments in the Philippines to provide Filipino children with equal access to basic education.

She served as a Career Undersecretary in the Department of Finance, Republic of the Philippines, responsible for revenue generation and tax reforms. She was part of the economic team of then Pres. Ramos which brought national economic stability through four years of budgetary surpluses and structural reforms.

She serves as a Faculty Member of the School of Government, Ateneo de Manila University and continuously participates in research and advocacy to promote good governance.

She worked for the International Monetary Fund as a Tax Advisor in Kyrgyzstan and a Program Officer of the Ford Foundation.

Dr. Guevara was conferred the 2nd Gawad Haydee Yorac Award 2008 for “her uncompromising integrity and professional excellence as a government official and for her extraordinary, consistent, and inspiring example of selfless, honest and intelligent public service.

Arvind Panagariya, NITI Aayog India, Vice Chairman

Dr. Arvind Panagariya is Vice-Chairman, Niti Aayog and has been Professor of Indian Political Economy at Columbia University. He is a former Chief Economist of the Asian Development Bank and Professor of Economics at the University of Maryland at College Park. He has also worked with the World Bank, IMF and UNCTAD in various capacities. He holds a Ph.D. degree in Economics from Princeton University.

Dr Panagariya has authored more than fifteen books. His book India: The Emerging Giant (2008, OUP, New York) was listed as a top pick of 2008 by the Economist magazine and described as the “definitive book on the Indian economy” by Fareed Zakaria of the CNN. The Economist magazine has described his book, Why Growth Matters, (with Jagdish Bhagwati) as “a manifesto for policymakers and analysts.”

Professor Panagariya’s scientific papers have appeared in the top economics journals such as the American Economic Review and the Quarterly Journal of Economics while his policy papers have appeared in the Foreign Affairs and Foreign Policy. Until recently, he wrote a monthly column in the Times of India and his guest columns have appeared in the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal and India Today.

In March 2012, the Government of India honored Panagariya with Padma Bhusan, the third highest civilian honors the country bestows in any field.

Azeema Adam, Governor of Maldives Monetary Authority

Dr. Azeema Adam is the Governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA). In this position, she holds a key role in economic policy making and strategic management of the country’s economy. Dr. Adam has worked to draw attention to the significant challenges currently facing several small island developing states including generating financing for infrastructure projects, and diversifying the economy to build resilience.

Dr. Adam joined the MMA in 1991 and has previously held the positions of Assistant Governor and Chief Economist at the MMA before becoming the Governor. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Canberra, Australia, MSc in International Development and Finance from the University of Leicester, UK, and a PhD in Economics from the University of Canberra, Australia.

Fazle Hasan Abed, Chairman, BRAC Bank Limited

Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, Founder and Chairperson of BRAC. Sir Fazle was born in 1936 in Bangladesh. He was educated at both Dhaka and Glasgow Universities. He was a professional accountant in his thirties, working as a senior corporate executive at Shell Oil when the 1971 Liberation War had a profound effect on him, dramatically changing the direction of his life. He left his job, moved to London and devoted himself to Bangladesh’s war of independence. There, he helped initiate a fundraising and awareness campaign called Help Bangladesh.

When the war was over, he returned to the newly independent Bangladesh, finding the economy in ruins. Millions of refugees, who had sought shelter in India during the war, started returning to the country and their relief and rehabilitation called for urgent efforts. It was then that he established BRAC to rehabilitate the returning refugees in a remote area in north-eastern Bangladesh. He directed his policy towards helping the poor develop their capacity to better manage their lives. Thus, BRAC’s primary objectives emerged as alleviation of poverty and empowerment of the poor. Under his leadership, in the span of only four decades, BRAC grew to become the largest development organisation in the world in terms of the scale and diversity of its interventions.

BRAC University, founded in 2001, is integral to BRAC’s work to create a more just and peaceful world by providing relevant, high-quality education and equipping its students with the knowledge and skills to address contemporary and future challenges. BRAC University is the embodiment of BRAC’s fundamental conviction that education and training are forces for positive change.

Sir Fazle has been honoured with numerous national and international awards for his achievements in leading BRAC, including the World Food Prize (2015), Trust Women Hero Award (2014), Spanish Order of Civil Merit (2014), Leo Tolstoy International Gold Medal (2014), CEU Open Society Prize (2013), Inaugural WISE Prize for Education (2011), Entrepreneur for the World Award (2009), David Rockefeller Bridging Leadership Award (2008), Inaugural Clinton Global Citizen Award (2007), Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership (2007), Palli Karma Shahayak Foundation (PKSF) Award for lifetime achievement in social development and poverty alleviation (2007), UNDP Mahbub ul Haq Award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Development (2004), Gates Award for Global Health (2004), Gleitsman Foundation International Activist Award (2003), Schwab Foundation’s Social Entrepreneurship Award (2003), Olof Palme Prize (2001), InterAction Humanitarian Award (1998) and Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership (1980).

He is also recognised by Ashoka as one of the 'global greats' and is a founding member of its prestigious Global Academy for Social Entrepreneurship. In 2009, he was appointed Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George (KCMG) by the British Crown in recognition of his services to reducing poverty in Bangladesh and internationally. He was a member of the Group of Eminent Persons appointed by the UN Secretary-General in 2010 to advise on support for the Least Developed Countries. In 2014, he was named in Fortune Magazine’s List of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders.

Sir Fazle has received many honorary degrees, including from Yale University (2007), Columbia University (2008), the University of Oxford (2009) and Princeton University (2014).

Zia Mody, Partner, AZB and Partners, India

Zia Mody is a prominent Indian legal consultant, and is considered a top authority on corporate merger and acquisition law, securities law and private equity. Having studied law at Cambridge and done her LL.M. at Harvard, she worked with Baker & McKenzie, one of the world’s leading law firms, for about five years in New York before returning to India and becoming Senior Partner of her firm AZB & Partners, currently one of India’s largest law firms.

Ms. Mody has been voted one of the most powerful CEOs in India by The Economic Times since 2004; as one of the 15 most powerful Indian women in business, also by The Economic Times; and as one of the 25 most powerful women in business by Business Today. She is a recipient of the Financial Express Knowledge Professional of the Year Award, and received the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence as the Businesswoman of the Year, 2010.

In addition to being a member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (SEBI’s) Standing Committee on Mutual Funds, and of the Capital Market Committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), she is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) , Hong Kong. Apart from this, she sat on the Committee of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal and was Vice-President of the London Court of International Arbitration.

Ms. Mody broke the glass ceiling in terms of having women working in the legal profession, where Indian courts were dominated by men when she returned to India from overseas some thirty years ago. Apart from her commitment to the legal practice, she is also a committed Baha'i by religion and serves as a member on various Baha'i organizations and Baha'i sponsored NGOs in the field of education and empowerment of rural women.

Luncheon

Keynote Remarks

Melinda Gates, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Introduction by Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Conversation between Christine Lagarde and Melinda Gates

Session 3: Infrastructure Investment, Fiscal Space, and Growth: Does Asia Need More Official Financing for Investment?

With international financial conditions becoming less accommodative, and activity in some critical parts of Asia moving to a lower equilibrium, economic growth is likely to settle below the high rates of the past decade. Addressing these challenges will require a recalibration of macroeconomic policies, efforts to reduce vulnerabilities, and deeper structural reforms. Key issues include upgrading investment in infrastructure, public investment and maintaining fiscal space, improving educational outcomes and other steps to spur productivity.

Moderator:

Shereen Bhan, CNBC India

Panelists:

Jayant Sinha, Minister of State (Finance), India

Mr. Jayant Sinha is currently the Minister of State for Finance, Ministry of Finance, government of India. Prior to that he served as the President of Internet Business Capital Corp. He also served in consulting positions at Stone & Webster and Synergic Resources Corporation. He served as Managing Director and Partner at Omidyar Network. Mr. Sinha led overall investment strategy and operations in India. In this role, Mr. Sinha helped Omidyar Network manage and develop the India-based portfolio across their access to capital and media, markets, and transparency initiatives.

He has more than 20 years of experience in investing and strategy consulting as well as a deep understanding of managing investments and advising businesses in India. He served as the Managing Director of Courage Capital Management, LLC, where he led technology and India-related investing for a global special situations hedge fund.

Prior to joining Courage Capital in 2006, Mr. Sinha spent 12 years with McKinsey & Company as a Partner. During his career with McKinsey, he led a variety of strategic, operational, and transaction-related projects with corporations in North America, Europe, and India. Mr. Sinha has been a Director of Aspiring Minds Assesment Pvt. Ltd. since November 8, 2011 and D.light Design Inc. since June 2010. He serves as a Director of Puja Holdings LLC, Ver se Innovation Private Limited, iMerit Technology Services Pvt. Ltd., and Omidyar Network India Advisors Private Limited. He served as a Non Executive Director of STCI Finance Limited since December 19, 2012 until November 11, 2014. He served as a Non Executive Director of Tree House Education & Accessories Limited since November 10, 2011 until March 01, 2014.

Mr. Sinha received an M.B.A. with distinction from the Harvard Business School; an M.S. in Energy Management and Policy from the University of Pennsylvania; and a B.Tech in Chemical Engineering with distinction from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

Masatsugu Asakawa, Vice Minister of Finance for Foreign Affairs, Japan

Masatsugu Asakawa is currently serving as Deputy Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs. He is responsible for international financial and taxation policies of the Ministry of Finance (MOF). Since he joined the MOF in 1981, he has held many senior positions in the Ministry, including Director for Co-ordination Division, International Bureau (2007-08), Development Policy Division (2006-07), Foreign Exchange Markets Division (2004-06), International Tax Policy Division, Tax Bureau (2002-04), and Regional Financial Cooperation Division, International Bureau (2000-02). Prior to his current appointment at the MOF, he served as Executive Secretary to the Prime Minister under the Aso Cabinet (2008-09).

Mr. Asakawa also has extensive experience outside the MOF. He served as Manager for Technical Assistance Management Unit, Fiscal Affairs Department at the IMF (1996-2000), and also served as Personal Assistant to the President of Asian Development Bank (1989-1992). Besides, he held several positions at the Committee on Fiscal Affairs, OECD, while serving his positions at the MOF, including Co-Chair for Board for Co-operation with Non-OECD Economies (2002-04), and Co-Chair for Forum on Harmful Tax Practices (2002-04), and Member of the Advisory Board (2002-05). Currently, he again serves as Co-Chair for Board for Co-operation with Non-OECD Economies since 2010 and as Chair for Committee on Fiscal Affairs since June 2011.

Vitor Gaspar, Director, IMF Fiscal Affairs Department

Vitor Gaspar, a Portuguese national, is Director of the Fiscal Affairs Department of the International Monetary Fund. Prior to joining the IMF, he held a variety of senior policy positions in Banco de Portugal, including most recently as Special Adviser. He served as Minister of State and Finance of Portugal during 2011-2013. He was head of the European Commission’s Bureau of European Policy Advisers during 2007-2010 and director-general of research at the European Central Bank from 1998 to 2004. Mr. Gaspar holds a Ph.D. and a post-doctoral agregado in Economics from Universidade Nova de Lisboa; he also studied at Universidade Católica Portuguesa.

Bambang Brodjonegoro, Minister of Finance, Indonesia

Bambang P. S. Brodjonegoro was appointed on October 27, 2014 as Minister of Finance in President Jokowi’s Working Cabinet for the period 2014–2019. He was born on October 3, 1966 and received his bachelor’s degree majoring in Economic Development and Regional Economy from Faculty of Economics, University Indonesia in 1990. He continued his master degree in University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States and graduated in 1995. In 1997, he earned his Ph.D from the same university. He served as the Dean of Faculty of Economics, University Indonesia during 2005–2009 and Director General Islamic Research and Training Institute, Islamic Development Bank up to 2010. On January 21, 2011, he was inaugurated as the Acting Head of Fiscal Policy Office, Ministry of Finance. Starting on October 1, 2013, Bambang served as the Vice Minister of Finance II.

Rakesh Mohan, former Chairman, National Transport Development Committee, India

Dr. Rakesh Mohan is currently Brookings India at Distinguished Fellow to oversee reaserch. Prior to that Dr. Mohan was Executive Director at the IMF from November, 2012 through October 2015. He was also the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India from September 9, 2002 to October 31, 2004 and July 2, 2005 to June 10, 2009. During the period 31 October 2004 to 2nd July, 2005 he was Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India and Chief Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance, Government of India in 2001-02.

Dr Mohan holds a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Imperial College, University of London, a B.A. from Yale University and a Ph. D in Economics from Princeton. Dr Mohan was also Professor in the Practice of International Economics of Finance, School of Management, and Senior Fellow, Jackson Institute of Global Affairs, Yale University from July 2010. He taught every Fall Semester there.

Dr. Rakesh Mohan has researched extensively in the areas of economic reforms and liberalisation, industrial economics, urban economics, infrastructure studies, economic regulation, monetary policy and the financial sector. He is the author of three books on urban economics and urban development, co-author of one and editor of another on Indian economic policy reforms, and author of two books on monetary policy and central banking and of numerous articles. He had had several other key positions and contributed immensely to economic research and policy making.

Keynote Address

Raghuram Rajan, Governor Reserve Bank of India

Introduction by Changyong Rhee, Director Asia and Pacific Department, IMF

Session 4: Developing Asia: Challenges of Climate Change and Economic Resilience

The economic consequences of climate change are increasingly coming to bear on the economies of the Asia-Pacific region—both by raising their proclivity to experience natural disasters and in the deterioration of living standards and environmental conditions. Water resources and flooding, coastal zones, heat waves, and increasingly volatile conditions for agriculture are just some of the problems to which Asia Pacific countries must adapt in coming years. Key issues in this session include preparations and investment for, and responses to, the economic effects of climate change and ways to build macroeconomic resilience.

Moderator:

Lin Xueling, Channel NewsAsia

Panelists:

Takehiko Nakao, President, Asian Development Bank

Mr. Takehiko Nakao serves as President at Asian Development Bank at Asian Development Bank Institute. Mr. Nakao has been the President at Asian Development Bank since April 2013 and serves as its Chairperson. Mr. Nakao was a Japanese Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs. He was dispatched to the International Monetary Fund as a senior-level staff economist for three years from 1994 and was assigned as minister at the Embassy of Japan in Washington for two years through 2007. Mr. Nakao was responsible for international affairs and foreign exchange policy from August 2011. Mr. Nakao joined the Finance Ministry in 1978. Mr. Nakao is a graduate of the University of Tokyo, and earned a Master of Business Administration degree at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1982.

As president Nakao has identified securing financial resources for the ADB and promoting public-private partnerships as focus areas and has called for a “more innovative, more inclusive and more integrated” development of the Asia-Pacific region. The ADB is expected to continue its focus on infrastructure, environment, regional integration and inclusiveness and gender equality and cofinancing initiatives and internal reforms to overcome the ADB's resource crunch and to streamline its performance.

Atiur Rahman, Governor, Central Bank of Bangladesh

Atiur Rahman, Governor of Bangladesh Bank. Appointed in 2009 and on his second term, a strong supporter of the ECF program and advocate for a successor arrangement. He is an expert on poverty alleviation and financial inclusion, and was recently awarded Central Bank Governor of 2015 for Asia by “The Banker”. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of London.

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, Attorney General and Minister of Finance, Fiji

Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme

Helen Clark became the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme on 17 April 2009, and is the first woman to lead the organization. She is also the Chair of the United Nations Development Group, a committee consisting of the heads of all UN funds, programmes and departments working on development issues.

Prior to her appointment with UNDP, Helen Clark served for nine years as Prime Minister of New Zealand, serving three successive terms from 1999 - 2008. Throughout her tenure as Prime Minister, Helen Clark engaged widely in policy development and advocacy across the international, economic, social and cultural spheres. Under her leadership, New Zealand achieved significant economic growth, low levels of unemployment, and high levels of investment in education and health, and in the well-being of families and older citizens. She and her government prioritized reconciliation and the settlement of historical grievances with New Zealand’s indigenous people and the development of an inclusive multicultural and multi-faith society.

Helen Clark graduated from University of Auckland in 1974 and became politically active in the New Zealand Labour Party. Forbes magazine ranked her 20th most powerful women in the world in 2006 and 50th in 2012.

Cocktails and Dinner

Session 5: Managing Capital Flows

This session will focus on the challenges in the region associated with the normalization of U.S. and other advanced economy monetary conditions, including ongoing and possible spillovers to Asia, appropriate policies to be implemented by spillover-receiving countries, and the possible role for international policy coordination in ameliorating the negative impact of volatile capital flows. Key themes to be addressed include: How EM policy makers can prepare for / cope with financial volatility associated with asynchronous AE monetary policy stances. Experience with macroprudential policies and their potential role in managing capital flows. Regional insurance mechanisms, and their role in containing contagion from financial turbulence. Past experience of the IMF in facilitating coordination of macro-financial policies among key economies and possible ways forward.

Moderator:

Maurice Obstfeld, Economic Counsellor and Head of Research Department, IMF

Panelists:

Sukudhew Singh, Deputy Governor, Bank Negara Malaysia

In-chang Song, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Finance and Strategy, Korea

Dr. In-Chang Song has worked for the Ministry of Strategy and Finance for 27 years. Throughout his career, he has got experience and specialty in international finance, macro-economic policies, tax and customs.

Dr. In-Chang Song is currently working as the Deputy Minister for International Affairs of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance (MOSF). Dr. In-Chang Song was previously Director General of International Financial Policy Bureau (2014~2016), International Financial Cooperation Bureau (2014), and Director General of Policy Cooperation Office (2013~2014). He also worked at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development as Board Director for Korea, Australia, New Zealand and Egypt (2010~2013).

He was Director of Human Resources Management Division (2009~2010), International Finance Division (2008~2009), Foreign Exchange Regulations and External Debt Division (2007~2008) and International Economic Affairs Division (2007). He was also Director of Human Resources Management in the Office of the President (2005~2007). In 2005, he was Director of Financial Hub Cooperation Division at Financial Policy Bureau. From 2002 to 2005, he was seconded to the World Customs Organization (WCO). He was also Senior Deputy Director of Customs and Tariff Cooperation Division (2002), Deputy Director of Economic Analysis Division (2001).

Dr. Song earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics at Seoul National University in 1986. He was also awarded a master’s degree from Graduate School of Public Administration at Seoul National University in public administration, 1988 and received a graduate degree from London School of Economics and Political Science in economics, 1997. Finally, he earned a doctoral degree from University of York (UK) in economics, 2000. The theme of his PhD dissertation is a theoretical and empirical study on international tax game. He is also co-writer of the book, Currency Story, which provides readers with an in-depth analysis and history of currency and eminent economists’ theories on currency.

Yiping Huang, Professor, National School of Development, Peking University

HUANG Yiping is Professor of Economics/Deputy Dean at the National School of Development and Director of the Institute of Internet Finance, Peking University. His research focuses mainly on macroeconomic policy and financial reform. Currently he serves as a member of the People’s Bank of China’s Monetary Policy Committee. He is also the Rio Tinto Adjunct Professor in the Chinese Economy at the Australian National University, a member of the China Finance 40 Forum and a member of the Chinese Economists 50 Forum.

Mr. Huang is also editor of China Economic Journal and an associate editor of the Asian Economic Policy Review. Previously, he was a policy analyst at the Research Center for Rural Development of the State Council, research fellow and senior lecturer of economics at the Australian National University, General Mills International Visiting Professor of Economics and Finance at the Columbia Business School, Managing Director and Chief Asia Economist for Citigroup, Chief Economist for Caixin Media Group, Managing Director and Chief Economist for Emerging Asia for Barclays, and an Independent Director of China Life Insurance Ltd, Minmetal Trust Ltd and Alibaba’s online bank Mybank. He received his Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences (Agricultural Economics) from Zhejiang Agricultural University, Master of Economics from Renmin University of China and PhD in economics from Australian National University.

Chatib Basri, Former Minister of Finance of Indonesia and Senior Lecturer Department of Economics University of Indonesia

Muhamad Chatib Basri is the former minister of finance of Indonesia (2013–14). He is currently an Ash Centre Senior Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. He also serves as chairman of the advisory board of the Mandiri Institute. Prior to being the minister of finance, Dr. Basri served as the Sherpa to the President of Indonesia for the G­20 meeting in Washington, D.C. (November 2008). He is a former Chairman of Investment Coordinating Board of Indonesia. Dr. Basri earned a Ph.D. in economics from Australian National University (ANU), where he also received a master’s in economic development. Dr. Basri teaches at the Department of Economics, University Indonesia. He was a member of the Asia Pacific Regional Advisory Group of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He was a member of the High Level Trade Experts Group co-chaired by Jagdish Bhagwati and Peter Sutherland. He has acted as a consultant for the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), OECD, AUSAID and UNCTAD.

Eswar Prasad, Professor of Economics, Cornell University

Dr. Eswar Prasad is the Tolani Senior Professor of Trade Policy at Cornell University. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, where he holds the New Century Chair in International Economics, and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He was previously chief of the Financial Studies Division in the International Monetary Fund's Research Department (2005-2006) and, before that, was the head of the IMF's China Division (2002-2004).

Dr. Prasad has co-authored and edited numerous books and monographs, including on financial regulation and on China and India. His latest book is The Dollar Trap: How the U.S. Dollar Tightened Its Grip on Global Finance (Princeton University Press, February 2014). His extensive publication record includes articles in numerous collected volumes as well as top academic journals such as the American Economic Review, American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, The Economic Journal, International Economic Review, Journal of Development Economics, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Journal of International Economics, Journal of International Money and Finance, Journal of Monetary Economics, and Review of Economics and Statistics. Current research interests include the macroeconomics of financial globalization; financial regulation, monetary policy frameworks and exchange rate policies in emerging markets; and the Chinese and Indian economies.

Dr. Prasad has testified before the Senate Finance Committee, the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services and the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, and his research on China has been cited in the U.S. Congressional Record. He was a member of the analytical team that drafted the 2008 report of the High-Level Committee on Financial Sector Reforms set up by the Government of India. He serves on an Advisory Committee to India's Finance Minister and is the Lead Academic for the DFID-LSE International Growth Center's India Growth Research Program. He is the creator of the Brookings-Financial Times TIGER (Tracking Indices for the Global Economic Recovery) index. He is also a Research Fellow at IZA (Institute for the Study of Labor). He has served as the co-editor of the journal IMF Staff Papers, was on the editorial board of Finance & Development and was the founding editor of the quarterly IMF Research Bulletin.

Coffee Break

Session 6: Finance, Financial Inclusion and Growth: Challenges for the Next Decade

Since 2000, the region’s financial sector has been growing at a robust pace. However, research has shown that this can create new risks for growth, given the costs of booms and busts over time. At the same time, increasing attention is being paid to the link between financial inclusion— greater availability of and access to financial services—and economic development, as barriers to financial inclusion can contribute to persistent income inequality and slower growth. This session will examine ways to maintain stability while ensuring continued growth and opportunity, and look at financial inclusion in Asia, gaps in access to finance, modes of infrastructure finance, and policies to address barriers to greater inclusion.

Moderator:

José Viñals, Financial Counselor and Director, IMF Monetary and Capital Markets Department

Panelists:

Andrew Sheng, Fung Institute, Chief Adviser China Banking Regulatory Commission

Andrew Sheng is a Distinguished Fellow of the Fung Global Institute, a Hong Kong-based global think tank. In 2013, he became the Chief Adviser to the China Banking Regulatory Commission, a Board Member of Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Malaysia, a member of the International Advisory Panel to the Australian Treasury’s Financial System Inquiry, and an advisor to the United Nations Environment Program Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System.

In addition, he serves as a member of the International Advisory Council of the China Investment Corporation, the China Development Bank, the Advisory Council on Shanghai as an International Financial Centre and the International Council of the Freie University, Berlin. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Graduate School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing and the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur. In 2009, he became the Pro-Chancellor of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak.

From 1998 to 2005, Mr. Sheng served as Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, having previously been a central banker with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and Bank Negara Malaysia.

In April 2013, Mr. Sheng was named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, Managing Director and CEO, Bandhan Bank Ltd., India

Mr. Chandra Shekhar is the Managing Director and CEO of Bandhan Bank, a new private sector back that received banking license from the RBI in 2015. Prior to that Mr. Ghosh served as the Chairman of the Bandhan Financial Services Pvt. Ltd., a leader in micro finances. He has around 25 years of experience in the field of microfinance and development. This has led him to be one of the microfinance mentors.

This “Senior Ashoka Fellow” is a guest lecturer and occasionally delivers lectures at institutes of high repute viz. Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (IIMC), Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirapalli (NITT), Training Institute of Central Bank of India, State Institute of Panchayat and Rural Development (SIPARD) at Tripura, National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI).

Mr. Ghosh has been the Panelist at some National and International forums and has also made presentations at various conferences held in China, Brazil, Nepal, France, Brussels, Bali, Marseilles and the like. Mr. Ghosh serves as a Director of Bandhan Financial Services Private Ltd. He is also one of the Committee Members of the Core Team that Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has formed for its Partner MFIs to advice in the policy making process. He is on the Board of READ India and also occupies an Advisory Board seat in other MFIs. Mr. Ghosh served as General Manager of Recovery at UCO Bank. Mr. Ghosh holds a Master Degree in Statistics.

He was awarded 'Entrepreneur of the Year' by Forbes 2014 and Economic Times 2014.

Arjuna Mahendran, Governor Central Bank of Sri Lanka

Mr Arjuna Mahendran has been appointed by His Excellency the President Maithripala Sirisena as the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka with effect from 23 January, 2015. Accordingly, he functions as the Chairman of the Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

Prior to his appointment as the Governor, Mr Arjuna Mahendran worked with Emirates NBD and HSBC Private Bank, where he held the positions of Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer, respectively. Mr Mahendran has nearly 30 years of extensive experience in the financial services industry across Asia.

Prior to joining HSBC Private Bank, Mr Mahendran was the Chief Economist-Strategist at Credit Suisse Private Bank and before this, he held the position of Chairman/Director General for the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka. For his achievements there, he was named runner-up in Euromoney Strategic Direct Investor’s “CEO Lifetime Achievement Award” in 2003.

Mr Mahendran has also worked as Director and Head of Economic Research for ASEAN and South Asia at SG Securities, as well as held senior positions with the Central Bank and Ministry of Finance in Sri Lanka and has worked on World Bank and IMF funded projects.

Mr Arjuna Mahendran holds an M.A. and B.A. (Hons) in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, from Balliol College, Oxford University, England. He also has been a regular commentator on CNBC, CNN and BBC TV channels, in addition to sharing his market insights with Bloomberg, The Financial Times, Asian Wall Street Journal and Forbes magazine.

Subir Gokarn, Executive Director for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Sri Lanka, International Monetary Fund

Subir Vithal Gokarn. Executive Director for: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Sri Lanka. Assumed Duties: 1st December, 2015. National of: India. Marital Status: Married. Prior to joining the IMF, Mr. Gokarn was Senior Fellow and Director of Research at the Brookings Institution India Center (2013-2015).

Earlier, he was Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (2009-12), Chief Economist of Standard & Poor’s Asia-Pacific (2007-09), Executive Director and Chief Economist of CRISIL (2002-07), Chief Economist at the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), New Delhi (2000-2002) and Associate Professor at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai (1991-2000).

He served a two-year term as member of the National Security Advisory Board (2013-15). He is currently a Member of the Expenditure Management Commission set up by the Government of India. He was also chairman of a task force mandated with setting up a Financial Data Management Centre (2014-15).

He received a doctorate in Economics from Case Western Reserve University, USA in 1989.

Closing Remarks

H.E. Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs, and Information and Broadcasting, India

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Closing Press Conference

Jayant Sinha, Minister of State (Finance), India

Mr. Jayant Sinha is currently the Minister of State for Finance, Ministry of Finance, government of India. Prior to that he served as the President of Internet Business Capital Corp. He also served in consulting positions at Stone & Webster and Synergic Resources Corporation. He served as Managing Director and Partner at Omidyar Network. Mr. Sinha led overall investment strategy and operations in India. In this role, Mr. Sinha helped Omidyar Network manage and develop the India-based portfolio across their access to capital and media, markets, and transparency initiatives.

He has more than 20 years of experience in investing and strategy consulting as well as a deep understanding of managing investments and advising businesses in India. He served as the Managing Director of Courage Capital Management, LLC, where he led technology and India-related investing for a global special situations hedge fund.

Prior to joining Courage Capital in 2006, Mr. Sinha spent 12 years with McKinsey & Company as a Partner. During his career with McKinsey, he led a variety of strategic, operational, and transaction-related projects with corporations in North America, Europe, and India. Mr. Sinha has been a Director of Aspiring Minds Assesment Pvt. Ltd. since November 8, 2011 and D.light Design Inc. since June 2010. He serves as a Director of Puja Holdings LLC, Ver se Innovation Private Limited, iMerit Technology Services Pvt. Ltd., and Omidyar Network India Advisors Private Limited. He served as a Non Executive Director of STCI Finance Limited since December 19, 2012 until November 11, 2014. He served as a Non Executive Director of Tree House Education & Accessories Limited since November 10, 2011 until March 01, 2014.

Mr. Sinha received an M.B.A. with distinction from the Harvard Business School; an M.S. in Energy Management and Policy from the University of Pennsylvania; and a B.Tech in Chemical Engineering with distinction from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, IMF

Born in Paris in 1956, Christine Lagarde completed high school in Le Havre and attended Holton Arms School in Bethesda (Maryland, USA). She then graduated from law school at University Paris X, and obtained a Master’s degree from the Political Science Institute in Aix en Provence.

After being admitted as a lawyer to the Paris Bar, Christine Lagarde joined the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie as an associate, specializing in Labor, Anti-trust, and Mergers & Acquisitions. A member of the Executive Committee of the Firm in 1995, Christine Lagarde became the Chairman of the Global Executive Committee of Baker & McKenzie in 1999, and subsequently Chairman of the Global Strategic Committee in 2004.

Christine Lagarde joined the French government in June 2005 as Minister for Foreign Trade. After a brief stint as Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, in June 2007 she became the first woman to hold the post of Finance and Economy Minister of a G-7 country. From July to December 2008, she also chaired the ECOFIN Council, which brings together Economics and Finance Ministers of the European Union, and helped fostering international policies related to financial supervision and regulation and strengthening global economic governance. As Chairman of the G-20 when France took over its presidency for the year 2011, she set in motion a wide-ranging work agenda on the reform of the international monetary system.

On July 5, 2011, Christine Lagarde became the eleventh Managing Director of the IMF, and the first woman to hold that position. On February 19, 2016, the IMF Executive Board selected her to serve as IMF Managing Director for a second five-year term starting on July 5, 2016.

Christine Lagarde was named Officier in the Légion d'honneur in April 2012.

A former member of the French national team for synchronized swimming, Christine Lagarde is the mother of two sons.

Luncheon