Global crisis conference coming

WASHINGTON, CMC – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is calling for research papers on options for the Caribbean after the global financial crisis.
The Washington-based financial institution said it is collaborating with the University of the West Indies (UWI) and the Central Bank of Barbados in organising a two-day conference in January in Bridgetown to discuss issues related to the region’s economic growth, debt, and associated policy challenges.
The IMF is urging researchers to submit “full papers”, by December 1, on “pressing economic and financial issues to help the Caribbean countries seize the opportunities and meet the challenges of high and sustained growth as the global economy recovers from the current ‘Great Recession’”.
The IMF said the program committee for the January 27-28 conference will evaluate all submissions for “originality, analytical rigor and policy relevance, and will contact the authors whose papers have been selected.”
It said the decision on whether the paper has been accepted for presentation will be conveyed by December 30. 
The IMF said the aim of the conference is to bring together academicians and researchers, as well as policymakers, to discuss and share their knowledge and experience.
“The recent global financial and economic crisis has brought to the fore the significant challenges faced by Caribbean countries,” it said.
“Growth has slowed significantly in most economies in the region, and the financial sector has come under stress,” it added. 
The IMF said that the regional fiscal stance has eased and public debt levels, which were already high, continue to increase rapidly.
It said these reflect the slowdown in growth and, in some cases, the authorities’ efforts to use “countercyclical fiscal policy to mitigate the impact of the crisis.” (CMC)