Luxembourg also wants to take its responsibilities
Finance Minister Yuriko Backes was in Washington. She participated in the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.
Crises that arrive one after the other, and decisions to be taken quickly to try to curb their effects. The planet is caught in a storm combining rising energy and food prices, slowdowns in global activity and instability linked to the war in Ukraine. From Thursday to Saturday, Finance Minister Yuriko Backes traveled to Washington to take part in the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. And all these thematic complexes have been removed. The Minister reiterated during these meetings Luxembourg’s determination to assume its responsibilities on the multilateral level and to present itself as a reliable partner on the international scene, according to the press release from the Ministry of Finance. .
Yuriko Backes thus announces Luxembourg’s intention to participate in the IMF’s new flagship instrument, the “Recovery and Resilience Trust”. The minister explained that Luxembourg wanted to dedicate 20% of its 2020 general allocation of special drawing rights (SDRs) to the benefit of this initiative. Luxembourg will thus become the largest contributor per capita to this IMF fund, the objective of which is to provide targeted assistance to low- and middle-income countries and intended for resilience to external shocks and to ensure sustainable growth. During her trip to the United States and within the framework of an exceptional meeting of the Eurogroup, Yuriko Backes exchanged views with several of her counterparts as well as senior representatives of international financial institutions.
Unwavering support
to Ukraine
On Thursday, the Minister took part in an exceptional meeting of the Eurogroup in the American capital, in the presence of the American Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen. It focused on the macroeconomic situation and the impact of the energy crisis on both sides of the Atlantic. Janet Yellen emphasized the importance of pursuing targeted policies to counter inflation, while maintaining strong financial support for Ukraine. In her speech, Yuriko Backes insisted on the importance of transatlantic cooperation, also to ensure that the financial support that Ukraine needs has maximum impact and that the resources mobilized are directed to where they are most needed, specifies the text of the Ministry of Finance. Yuriko Backes also reaffirmed her support for the initiative of the OECD and the G20 to put in place a two-pillar solution to address the challenges relating to the establishment of minimum taxation for companies at the global level, by determining Luxembourg’s determination in favor of rapid implementation.
The Minister also met with the Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Makhtar Diop, to discuss joint projects between the IFC and Luxembourg, and to sign, at the same time, a new 4-year partnership agreement. This agreement consists of specific support for low- and middle-income countries with a view to strengthening corporate and SME governance, developing local capital markets and combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
Yuriko Backes was also part of an IMF high-level panel, moderated by Ratna Sahay, Senior Gender Advisor at the IMF, on the role of women in the financial sector. The theme of the meeting: “World of Finance: where are the women?” In this regard, Yuriko Backes explained the IMF’s recent decision to make gender diversity an integral part of its activities. The Minister also insisted on the fact that reducing inequalities between women and men is an economic imperative.
The Luxembourg delegation also took part in a round table organized by the American Treasury, under the theme “Degrading the Russian military-industrial complex”. Luxembourg reiterated its unfailing support for Ukraine and underlined the extent of the assets blocked in the context of the implementation of financial sanctions against Russia.
After her trip, Yuriko Backes stressed the importance of a multilateral response to this “polycrisis” affecting the planet.