Search
AI-powered search, human-powered content.
scroll to top arrow or icon

Rania Al-Mashat on fragile trade flows

At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, former Egyptian Minister of Planning, Economic Development & International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat speaks with GZERO’s Tony Maciulis about a global economy increasingly shaped by geopolitical fragmentation and rising uncertainty.

She warns that while today’s shocks echo the Russia–Ukraine war, where exchange rate movements amplified the impact of higher fuel prices, the scale and structure of uncertainty are now deeper. “What is different this time is not just the price, but also the risk with the availability and ability of trade to move and products to move freely between countries,” she says. While the IMF is calling for greater coordination, she stresses that implementation will depend on multilateral cooperation in an increasingly fragmented world.

On global governance, she notes that emerging regional alliances are not a replacement for the multilateral system, but a complement: “There's urgent needs to be able to face crises which are happening more frequently and with different magnitudes.” From tourism pressures to investment flows, she warns that the longer instability persists, the greater the global economic fallout.

This conversation is presented by GZERO Media in partnership with Microsoft. The Global Stage series convenes global leaders for critical conversations on the geopolitical forces reshaping our world.

More from Global Stage

Can we use AI to secure the world's digital future?

How do we ensure AI is safe, available to everyone, and enhancing productivity? It’s a big topic at this year’s UN General Assembly. That’s why GZERO’s Global Stage livestream brought together leading experts at the heart of the action for “Live from the United Nations: Securing our Digital Future,” an event produced in partnership between the Complex Risk Analytics Fund, or CRAF’d, and GZERO Media’s Global Stage series, sponsored by Microsoft.

Is the Europe-US rift leaving us all vulnerable?

As the tense and politically charged 2025 Munich Security Conference draws to a close, GZERO’s Global Stage series presents a conversation about strained relationships between the US and Europe, Ukraine's path ahead, and rising threats in cyberspace.

World Bank’s strategy for AI, jobs, and economic resilience

At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, World Bank Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer Paschal Donohoe joined GZERO’s Tony Maciulis to discuss how development institutions balance immediate crises with long-term goals.

UN’s Amina Mohammed on the “rebirthing" of global cooperation

At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed says that diplomacy remains the UN’s primary tool for mitigating conflict as tensions escalate in Iran and across the Middle East.

Why the IMF is cutting global growth forecast

At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, Eurasia Group’s Rob Kahn joined GZERO’s Tony Maciulis to assess why the IMF has downgraded global growth to 3.1%.

Getting more "bang for the buck" to fund critical global projects

At the 2026 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, GZERO’s Tony Maciulis asked World Bank Group’s German Cufré how development institutions prioritize investments when funding is limited, and global needs are growing.