Outline
Event: 7th IMF-JICA Joint International Conference
Date: Thursday, February 13, 2025
Co-organized by: International Monetary Fund (IMF), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Place: International Conference Hall, JICA Sadako Ogata Institute for Peace and Development
- main participants
More than 30 participants, including one finance minister and six central bank governors from 14 Asian countries*, as well as ministers and bureau chiefs, attended the meeting. Attending from the Ministry of Finance were Mr. Mimura, Finance Officer; from the IMF, Mr. Okamura, Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Choueiri, Deputy Director General for Asia and the Pacific (APD), and Mr. Mooji, Deputy Director General for Finance; and from JICA, President Tanaka, Director Yahara, Director Hara, and Special Assistant to President Muto.
(*) Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Fiji, Laos, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam), South Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal), East Asia (Mongolia).
Background and Objectives
Since 2011, the IMF and JICA have held biennial international conferences inviting finance and central bank officials from Asian countries to provide a forum for discussion and networking opportunities on Asian and global issues.
The main theme of the 7th conference was “Navigating for a Better Future in Emerging and Frontier Asia Under Uncertainty: Economic and Fiscal Policy Challenges and Prospects. The theme was “Navigating for a Better Future in Emerging and Frontier Asia Under Uncertainty: Economic and Fiscal Policy Challenges and Prospects.
Amid deepening uncertainty due to conflicts, natural disasters, and geopolitical tensions, participants from fiscal and monetary authorities, IMF, and JICA discussed in three sessions and a roundtable on “Medium- and Long-term Fiscal Policy,” “Climate Change Adaptation,” and “Industrial Policy,” drawing on experiences and lessons learned from initiatives in various countries.
- contents
At the beginning of the meeting, Mr. Okamura, Deputy Managing Director, IMF, and Mr. Tanaka, President, JICA, gave opening remarks as the organizers, and Mr. Mimura, Finance Officer, Ministry of Finance, gave opening remarks.
Session 1: Fiscal Policy under Uncertainty
The IMF noted that Asian countries need to improve their fiscal soundness while addressing diverse spending needs under the U.S.-China trade friction and unstable financial markets. The IMF also stressed the need to strengthen tax revenues, utilize AI and digital technologies, and promote international cooperation in order to address the trilemma of debt reduction, expenditure growth, and political and economic management. Speakers from various countries introduced economic reforms that have reduced debt after natural disasters and pandemics, fiscal management aimed at becoming a middle power, job creation, foreign direct investment efforts, and the issuance of sustainability-linked bonds as a new financing tool. He also mentioned the importance of discussions to gain public understanding and support for these initiatives.
Session 2: Strengthening Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience
The IMF emphasized the importance of improving the capacity of governments to assess climate risks and other aspects of climate change adaptation under national adaptation plans in Asian countries where natural disasters occur frequently, by aligning their budgetary frameworks with the macroeconomic frameworks necessary for climate change adaptation. He stressed the importance of a national risk financing strategy that takes climate risk into account, including investment in proactive disaster risk reduction. Based on the Philippines’ case study of cooperation in proactive infrastructure, technical cooperation, and disaster risk financing, he discussed the need to address system-wide resilience in an integrated manner, while simultaneously drawing on the country’s proactive proactive spending on proactive disaster risk reduction and financial risk management efforts. The speakers introduced measures to address climate risks specific to island countries, cold regions, landlocked countries, and other regions, and also pointed out the need for international cooperation, noting the limitations of national financial responses.
Session 3: Industrial Policy Outlook and Tradeoffs
Based on data from ongoing research studies, the IMF noted that recent industrial policies tend to have economic security objectives for the country’s advanced technologies and critical minerals, and that the results of industrial policies vary widely, and that careful design is necessary to achieve substantial economic benefits. Professor Todo of Waseda University emphasized the importance of government support for international joint research and R&D promotion, noting that industrial policies aimed at expanding supply chains and intellectual networks tend to be effective for economic growth, innovation, and resilience, and mentioning JICA’s cooperation. Participants from each country explained their industrial policy initiatives aimed at promoting foreign investment, job creation and economic growth, and lessons learned from past policies.
Session 4: Round Table
Summarizing the conference, panelists discussed the future prospects for each country’s economic policies. The speakers discussed the importance of fiscal and monetary policy coordination and independence, the importance of political ownership of timely policy actions and reforms, adaptation and adjustment of industrial policies based on economic conditions, and greening of financial systems. He mentioned in particular the joint training program with the Thai government on public debt management for government officials from sub-Saharan African countries, and emphasized that JICA will continue to promote mutual learning and cooperation with other countries in the future.
The meeting provided a meaningful opportunity for very active discussions and exchanges with fiscal and financial authorities from various countries, who shared their experiences and lessons learned from their respective initiatives. JICA will continue to work with the IMF to strengthen the resilience of Asian countries.
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