A 3-day virtual Expert Group Meeting on "Building Forward Fairer-Economic Policies for an Inclusive Recovery and Development"

This session will first discuss the recent macroeconomic developments, emerging challenges and economic outlook in the Asia-Pacific region for 2022-2023. It will then examine the latest trends of economic inequality in the Asia-Pacific region, the impact of COVID-19 on economic inequality, and policies being pursued for inclusive economic recovery.

Presentation on the preliminary findings and messages of Survey 2022 ( 15 mins)

Macroeconomic developments, challenges and outlook in Asia-Pacific for 2021-2022 ( 15 mins each)
o Brewing risks in major economies, such as China, and spillovers to the region
o Scarring effects from COVID-19
o An inclusive growth framework
o Inequality dynamics of middle-income/upper-middle income countries, and lessons on reducing inequality from developed countries

Q&A (15 mins)

Opening session

This session will explore the role of fiscal policies in mitigating inequalities, with a special focus on fiscal consolidations and their impact on (worsening) inequalities. Given the rising debt levels and expected fiscal consolidations, the panelists will discuss potential changes to fiscal spending that can have the least impact on those at the bottom of the economic pyramid. The session will be in two segments followed by a discussion (15 mins each):
o Designing fiscal policies to reduce inequalities
o Fiscal response to COVID-19 in Timor- Leste
o Fiscal policies to mitigate the impact of pandemics on inequality

Discussion on the impact of social policies and taxation structures on inequality. The participants will discuss how fiscal policies impact inequalities, why inequality-reducing policies can have adverse impact on those at the bottom of the economic pyramid, and how to prioritize inequality-reducing fiscal policies aiming to build forward better (15 mins each).
o Addressing inequalities at their roots: policies for rural Asia-Pacific?
o Research review on inequalities and fiscal policies in Asia- pacific
o Landscape of inequality reducing fiscal policy in Asia-Pacific - moving forward

Q&A

This session will explore how monetary and financial policies can support inclusive development in Asia and the Pacific.
The first segment examines central banks’ actions to enhance financial inclusion, literacy, and consumer protection. It also talks about how central banking can promote green development, as low-carbon, climate-resilient development disproportionally benefits the poor. The second segment discusses the potential of social finance, especially through innovative financial instruments such as social impact bonds and sustainability-linked bonds and loans.

Presentations on monetary policy for inclusive and green development (12 mins each)
o Enhancing financial inclusion in the post-COVID-19 world
o Promoting financial literacy and strengthening financial consumer protection in Bangladesh
o Introducing a central bank digital currency in Thailand
o Green central banking

Q&A (15 mins)

Presentations on financial policy for sustainable development
o Accelerate the growth of Singapore's sustainable finance ecosystem - Green and Sustainability-Linked Loan Grant Scheme
o Innovations ahead for capital markets -the rise of sustainability-linked financing
o A paradigm shift in the delivery of public service - use of social impact bonds

Q&A

This session will focus on the Forthcoming HDR of the UNDP that discusses present day uncertainty in the context of Anthropocene and growing inequalities. Navigating to a stable, preferred future in the Anthropocene calls for transformational change, inherent in which are multiple and overlayed dislocations. Disadvantaged groups face a double whammy of disempowerment – first, as uncertainty diminishes individual choices and second, as social fault lines, themselves exacerbated by uncertainty, reduce agency further. Together, inequalities and uncertainty unsettle lives, impeding people’s ability to do and be what they value and have reason to value – the expansion of which is central to human development.
The discussion will inform the process of developing the report and ensure that it speaks to key human development issues for people and policymakers in the Asia-Pacific region.

This session will focus on the relationship between economic inequality and the structural transformation in the Asia-Pacific context to take stock of the latest policy thinking, provide an outlook for Asia-Pacific countries with different characteristics, and inform policy makers of potential policy gaps and challenges.

The discussion will seek to also explore the policy options that can mitigate inequality-enhancing structural disruptions and promote economic structures conducive for inclusive development, with particular focus on industrial, labor and technology policies.
Presentations (15 minutes each):
o General trends of economic inequality between and within countries
o Industrialization, tertiarization and distribution: what does the latest global evidence suggest?
o The effect of structural transformation on inequality dynamics in Indonesia, and the outlook going forward
o East Asia’s experience in the relation between structural transformation and inequality, and the latest policy lessons
o Developer’s dilemma in India: is the trade-off between structural transformation and inclusion inevitable?
o Structural transformation for inclusive growth and productive employment, and the role of labor market