World Bank Managing Director Sri Mulyani Indrawati addresses the 40th Anniversary Conference of the NCDO

World Bank Managing Director Sri Mulyani Indrawati addressed the 40th Anniversary of the Dutch National Committee for International Cooperation and Sustainable Development's (NCDO) at Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam February 4th.

Over 400 participants took part in the conference, which, in addition to Ms. Sri Mulyani Indrawati, included key note speeches from WTO Director General Pascal Lamy, Dutch Minister for European Affairs and International Cooperation Ben Knapen and H.M. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. Ms. Indrawati's speech focused on the World Bank's response to the financial and food crises by expanding its work on social protection through programs such as the Rapid Social Response Facility and by ensuring food security though the Global Food Crisis Response Program among others. Ms. Indrawati also spoke of the Bank's commitment to sharing its development data and knowledge through the Open Data initiative. She further thanked the Netherlands for its leadership and commitment to international cooperation even in times of economic uncertainty. You may read Ms. Indrawati's speech here.

While in the Netherlands, Ms. Indrawati also addressed a meeting of the World Connectors, which brings together Dutch political, academic, business, civil society, religious, and youth leaders to debate and form a common position on various development issues. She met with government officials including Minister Knapen, with whom she discussed the World Bank's new lending instrument 'Program for Results' (see also the report on the website of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs) amongst other issues, and Secretary General Richard van Zwol of the Ministry of Finance with whom she discussed preparations for the World Bank's Spring Meetings.