2022 WBG-IMF Annual Meetings Final Report

Executive Overview

The 2022 Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group (WB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) centred around climate change, the energy transition, global inequality, and financial instability. From the Civil Society Organizations Townhall with World Bank President David Malpass to sessions on inclusive growth and the debt and climate crises, the YDC Delegates were exposed to a rich array of panels where key challenges and ideas were shared with representatives from around the world. Across the Annual Meetings, a key theme was the importance of multilateralism as the world enters another period of economic instability.

Highlights

With their official Civil Society Organization status, delegates were able to participate in the Civil Society Policy Forum, the WB/IMF’s largest platform for engaging with civil society. Outside of the Annual Meetings, the YDC Delegation also had the opportunity to meet with Arun Alexander, the Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Canada to the United States of America, and Canadian staff at the World Bank and IMF: Ziana Ahmed, James Clark, and Marc Gurstein. The purpose of these meetings was to enrich delegates’ perspectives and glean information and strategic insights from practitioners. After two years of virtual meetings and networking during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was refreshing to be able to make these connections in person and face-to-face and have a more meaningful impact with our key interlocutors.

Key Takeaways 

We had a number of key takeaways - first and foremost, while we found there to be an openness towards inviting youth to events such as these, it takes a lot of research and targeted engagement to find the right people who will take the next step and listen meaningfully to youth perspectives. Rather than finding this a source of frustration, however, the delegation doubled down on their efforts and introduced a youth voice in conversations where these points would not have otherwise been raised - a key lesson for future delegations. Strategic research in advance of the delegation — including stakeholder consultations and surveys — and effective communications during and afterwards are key to moving the dial forward on these issues.

Up Next

The Delegation was comprised of a mix of undergraduate and graduate students and those in the early stages of their careers — so who knows what’s next! Recognizing the sheer amount of potential and opportunity at our fingertips was energizing and really motivated us to continue tackling these policy challenges back at home in our post-delegation lives and perhaps even embark upon new challenges down the road. Until then, check out the Delegation’s podcast episode on Beyond the Headlines and journal article!