The ABCDE is one of the world's best known series of conferences on development, and an opportunity for many of the world's finest development thinkers to present their ideas. History The concept of the ABCDE was developed by the World Bank in 1988 and the first conference was held at World Bank headquarters in Washington D.C in the same year. Since then, ABCDE has become an annual event, attracting a broad audience each year. In 1999, the first ABCDE-Europe took place in Paris, acknowledging Europe's significant experience in development and poverty eradication and its major role in providing development assistance. Since 2003, the World Bank organizes two ABCDE conferences every year, one global ABCDE - the next one to be held in Slovenia, in May 2007 - and a regional ABCDE, the next being held in Beijing, China in January 2007. Profile Over the past few years, the conference has been closely linked to the international agenda, offering a platform of exchange and contributing ideas on the G8 Summit, the European Union Presidency and other global events.
Throughout the years, the ABCDE has brought together researchers, policy makers, students, private sector and NGO representatives, and prominent leaders from all over the world, among them: the Prime Ministers of France, Belgium and Norway, the President of the EU Commission, Ministers, EU Commissioners, Nobel Prize laureates for economics, outstanding business leaders and representatives of civil society.
ABCDE - Europe 2004, Brussels - A Resounding Success The topic of the ABCDE-Europe 2004 was: Doha Monterrey and Johannesburg – are we on track? Over 500 participants from 70 countries worldwide met in Brussels, representing a wide spectrum of backgrounds. This number marked a record of attendance for the ABCDE conferences. ABCDE 2004 featured: James D. WOLFENSOHN, President of The World Bank
François BOURGUIGNON, Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President of The World Bank
Joseph E. STIGLITZ, Nobel Prize Laureate, Columbia University
Romano PRODI, President of the EU Commission
Guy VERHOFSTADT, Prime Minister of Belgium
Pascal LAMY, EU Commissioner for Trade
Hilde JOHNSON, Minister of International Development of Norway
Benoît OUATTARA, Minister for Trade, Enterprise Promotion and Handicrafts, Burkina Faso
Ali BABACAN, Minister of State for Economy, Turkey The media attendance and coverage of the event was remarkable. Nearly 40 prominent international media organizations were present at the conference (including the Financial Times, Le Monde, Agence France-Press, Liberation, BBC etc.). The ABCDE-Europe 2004 has succeeded in energizing the European academic community as well as researchers dealing with development issues. The conference contributed to the widening of the World Bank’s dialogue with academics and policy-makers worldwide. To view the program of ABCDE 2004, click here. Read comments on ABCDE 2004. ABCDE 2005, Amsterdam - Global Focus The 2005 conference aimed to take on a more global outlook by involving academics, researchers, civil society representatives, policy makers and private sector leaders worldwide to engage in a discussion on global development issues. ABCDE 2005 in The Netherlands (Amsterdam, May 23-24, 2005) was therefore the first global ABCDE held in Europe. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister for Development Co-operation and the Ministry of Finance of The Netherlands co-organized the conference with The World Bank. ABCDE 2005 featured: François BOURGUIGNON, Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President of The World Bank
Agnes VAN ARDENNE, Minister for Development Cooperation, The Netherlands
Gerrit ZALM, Minister of Finance, The Netherlands
Karien van GENNIP, Minister of Foreign Trade, The Netherlands
Ernesto ZEDILLO, Former President, Mexico, and Director, Yale Center for the Study of Globalization, Yale University, USA
Nathan NABETA, State Minister for Trade, Uganda
Hisashi OWADA, Judge, International Court of Justice and Former Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, Japan To view the program of ABCDE 2005, click here.
To go to the ABCDE home page click here. ABCDE 2006, Tokyo - Beyond Europe Thanks to the support of the Japanese Ministry of Finance, the ABCDE 2006 was held for the first time in East Asia on May 29-30, 2006 at Mita House in Tokyo. Over the two days, nearly 900 people participated in the conference, marking an attendance record in the history of the ABCDE.
The overall theme of the conference was “Rethinking Infrastructure for Development” and addressed several major topics related to infrastructure and growth, climate change, energy efficiency, rural development, agriculture and the implications for regional cooperation. ABCDE 2006 featured:
Sadakazu TANIGAKI, Minister of Finance, Japan
Paul WOLFOWITZ, President, The World Bank Group
Donald KABERUKA, President, African Development Bank
Sadako OGATA, President, Japan International Cooperation Agency
Joseph STIGLITZ, Columbia University, USA
Francois BOURGUIGNON, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President, The World Bank Group back to top |
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