The great and the good of international development are in Washington, DC, this week for the most important event on their annual calendar: the World Bank and International Monetary Fund annual meetings. Heavy hitters like World Bank President Ajay Banga and IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva will discuss the world’s economic outlook in 2025, while central bank heads from some of the most fragile economies will discuss their successes and challenges.
Ukraine’s central bank chief will talk about how to keep his country’s economy functioning with Russian missiles raining down while young Ukrainians in their prime are fighting in trenches instead of building wealth. Pakistan’s finance minister will focus on his country’s daunting challenges, from devastating floods and massive debt to deeply divisive politics. And on a more positive note, South Africa’s central bank chief will be happy to discuss the rand’s hopeful summer turnaround – and what it could mean for the Rainbow Nation.
GZERO Senior Writer Matthew Kendrick will be rubbing elbows to broach the elephant in the room: What is everyone thinking about the US election? GZERO’s Chief Content Officer Tony Maciulis will be interviewing M. Ayhan Kose, the World Bank’s deputy chief economist, and Hana Brixi, global director of gender, among others. We’ll also cover efforts to ensure that development is spread evenly across societies and focus on women’s empowerment and health care. Don’t forget to follow Tony, Matt, and GZERO on social media to stay up to date.Quantum computing is moving closer to real-world applications, but making the technology understandable remains a challenge.
Ukraine has spent years trying to convince the West that it could survive and, eventually, prevail against Russia. This summer, that argument may finally be gaining traction.
On Monday, President Donald Trump announced the United States would reimpose its naval blockade of Iran, effective Tuesday afternoon. Iran responded by declaring the Strait of Hormuz closed to all traffic that does not route through its preferred corridor.
People can now travel freely between Spain and British overseas territory of Gibraltar, after the European Union and the United Kingdom clinched a deal last year that facilitated the fall of the border wall between the two countries on Tuesday.