World Bank and IMF move this year’s meeting from Morocco to Washington

The meetings were originally scheduled to be held in Marrakesh but venue now changed due to Covid uncertainty

The World Bank headquarters in Washington. AFP

The World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund said on Monday that their joint annual meeting would be held in Washington DC in October, not Morocco as planned.

The meetings were originally scheduled to be held in Marrakesh but organisers changed the venue because of “continuing uncertainty over the Covid pandemic”, the World Bank and IMF said in a joint statement.

They said the October 2023 annual meetings would be held in the North African city.

The World Bank and the IMF usually meet at their adjoining headquarters in Washington in two of every three years, gathering in another member country every third year.

Central bankers, ministers of finance and development, private sector executives, civil society, media and academics convene to discuss financial and economic issues of global concern.

Topics include poverty eradication, inclusive economic growth, job creation and climate change.

The boards of governors of the World Bank and the IMF make decisions on major policy issues. These are introduced by their respective executive boards.

The boards include one governor from each of the institutions’ member countries, typically the finance minister, central bank governor or the minister of development.

Typically, about 13,000 people attend the meetings. Those present include observers from other inter-governmental organisations such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Trade Organisation, and representatives of financial institutions and bodies, and civil society organisations.