(AGENPARL) – Thu 24 April 2025 DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
(Joint Ministerial Committee
of the
Boards of Governors of the Bank and the Fund
on the
Transfer of Real Resources to Developing Countries)
ONE HUNDRED AND ELEVENTH MEETING
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 24, 2025
DC/S/2025-0009
April 24, 2025
Statement by
Fabio Panetta
Governor of the Bank of Italy
Constituency of Albania, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal,
San Marino, and Timor-Leste
Statement by
Fabio Panetta
Governor of the Bank of Italy
Constituency of Albania, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, San Marino, and Timor-Leste
111th Meeting of the Development Committee
April 24, 2025
Washington, DC
The world is facing an alarming rise in conflicts and acute geopolitical tensions. Persistently weak
security conditions, sudden clashes in fragile, conflict-, and violence-affected countries, and
setbacks in international trade have far-reaching interrelated consequences, ultimately
undermining our efforts to further reduce extreme poverty and placing decades of progress at risk.
In the current environment where the rules-based global economic governance faces new
challenges, international financial institutions like the World Bank Group (WBG) and the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) are all the more important. For 80 years, they have promoted
economic and financial stability, poverty reduction, and development. Their role remains vital in
global finance and offers the best value for donor aid. They deserve – and have – our support.
But complacency is unacceptable: all international financial institutions must enhance their
efficiency and leverage their respective comparative advantages to ensure impact and strengthen
their capacity to meet the priorities of developing countries. They must work as a system in a
selective, coordinated, and collaborative manner.
In this spirit, we supported the WBG’s Evolution, with a renewed focus on reducing poverty and
boosting shared prosperity on a livable planet. Thanks to the implementation of the G20 Capital
Adequacy Framework Review, promoted under the Italian Presidency, financial resources have
increased. This can continue as we better incorporate other key features – such as preferred creditor
treatment, concentration risk, and callable capital – into financial ratios.
We have achieved a successful 21st replenishment of the International Development Association
(IDA) thanks to a concerted effort and look forward to its timely implementation. Defending and
strengthening IDA is fundamental to reinforcing global stability and shared prosperity, supporting
fragile countries, and ensuring that none are left behind. Along with other donors, clients, and
WBG’s management, our Constituency did its part. We must remain united and confirm the
international community’s commitment to cooperation and solidarity.
The focus on jobs and private sector development proposed in the Development Committee Paper
is both timely and instrumental to generating sustainable growth.
The WBG’s new approach to job creation should include a reinvigorated effort to invest in people’s
education and skills; we should also expand coverage and improve the efficiency of social
protection systems. These efforts are essential to increasing resilience, broadening opportunities,
and promoting economic transformation. As artificial intelligence drives change, ensuring
balanced benefits across sectors and society is vital.
It is equally important that the WBG work with client countries to identify and address obstacles
to private sector development. This requires improving the quality of institutions and regulation,
using development policy lending more effectively, and strengthening market infrastructure. One
example of such an infrastructure is fast payment systems (FPS), which are crucial to the
enhancement of cross-border trade and investment: the Banca d’Italia is providing an FPS in the
Western Balkans that is up to international technical and regulatory standards and will favor
integration with the euro area.
To thrive and create jobs, private companies need market demand. The WBG must refine its
strategies on market creation, competition, trade, and foreign direct investment. Ongoing work in
support of diversified and resilient value chains – both global and regional – can increase market
access, boost productivity and technology transfer, and drive resilient industrialization. In the
critical minerals sector, the Resilient and Inclusive Supply Chain Enhancement (RISE) Partnership
is exemplary. RISE builds productive capacity and fosters sustainable economic growth in
resource-rich developing countries, contributing to making the global clean energy transition more
inclusive.
The WBG’s plan to boost private capital mobilization is ambitious and necessary to expanding
development finance. We strongly support changes to IFC’s business model and the proposed
financial innovations, particularly those aimed at offering more local currency solutions.
We also encourage the WBG to actively contribute to the design of innovative partnerships with
financial intermediary funds (FIFs), such as climate and environmental vertical funds. Among
other options, FIFs could provide hybrid capital and portfolio guarantees to the multilateral
development banks, thus leveraging their resources by a factor of 10 and giving countries easier
access to finance, while still preserving their institutional goals.
The WBG’s engagement in the process leading to the Fourth Finance for Development conference
in Seville has been commendable. While we should not forget the unprecedented amount of
resources deployed by the WBG over the past years, we invite all relevant stakeholders to work
together to strengthen existing initiatives and avoid overlaps and duplicated efforts.
Our Constituency strongly supports the WBG’s engagement in Africa. Italy’s Mattei Plan for
Africa aims to promote development and reduce poverty through concrete investment projects,
along with a renewed relationship with African countries based on cooperation, shared interests,
and mutual benefits. The Plan seeks to attract investment, create jobs, and strengthen supply
chains, focusing on education, agriculture, health, energy, and water. As part of this, Italy provides
additional cofinancing to key infrastructural projects, like the Lobito corridor, and to the WBGAfrican Development Bank’s Mission 300 initiative to bring affordable energy to 300 million
Africans by 2030. The expansion of the WBG Rome office should contribute to enhancing
knowledge sharing and projects aligned with the Plan’s objectives. This should include moving to
Rome dedicated IFC personnel for business development.
Strengthening collaboration between the WBG and the European Commission in Africa is crucial
to maximizing impact and efficiency. This partnership can leverage the EU Global Gateway
initiative to mobilize further resources, ensure better coordination and scale up essential
investment projects.
We look forward to discussion of the new Fragility, Conflict and Violence strategy. As the WBG’s
contribution to the prevention agenda, we expect innovative and tailored approaches in targeted
sectors to create jobs. Continued support to refugees and their host communities remains essential.
The WBG’s leadership in responding to conflicts and tensions is also evident in its commitment
to supporting Ukraine. The Fourth Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA4) affirms that
extensive destruction caused by the war will require a huge financial effort over the next decade.
We applaud the WBG for this work, which is instrumental in guiding international support and
ensuring a coordinated and effective response to the country’s long-term recovery.
Finally, we would like to reiterate the importance of improving the monitoring and reporting on
the impact of WBG operations. Incorporating better data, impact evaluation, and the lessons of
experience should be part of this process. The search for higher-quality projects with sustainable