This year’s World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings focused on three central and interrelated themes: COVID-19, debt, and climate. More than a year into a pandemic that has devastated economies and industries, the discussions centered around a green and equitable recovery.
“We’re focused on giving everyone a fair shot — a shot in the arm to bring the pandemic to an end and underpin recovery, and a fair shot at a better life for vulnerable people,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said last week. She called for international support, including from IMF, to ensure low-income countries aren’t left out of the recovery.
Still, the gaps between high- and lower-income nations are growing on a variety of fronts, whether vaccine access, debt levels, or climate change. The Spring Meetings announced a number of initiatives to address some of those divergent paths.