The Governor of the Bank of Botswana, Mr Cornelius Dekop, led the Bank’s delegation, comprising senior officials, to the 2025 Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank, held in Washington DC, United States of America, from 13 – 18, October 2025. In his capacity as the Governor for Botswana at the IMF and Chairperson of the Africa Group 1 Constituency (comprising 14 countries in Sub[1]Saharan Africa) for the 2024 – 2026 term, Governor Dekop participated in several high-level engagements during the Annual Meetings. These included the Joint Annual Plenary of the IMF and the WBG; International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC); the African Caucus engagement with the IMF Managing Director, where Africa’s macroeconomic priorities, climate financing, and capacity development were discussed.
The Governor chaired the Africa Group 1 constituency 2 meeting, which provides a platform for member countries to consolidate regional perspectives ahead of engagements with IMF Leadership. In addition, the Governor held bilateral meetings with IMF Deputy Managing Director, Mr Bo Li, senior leadership of IMF Departments and other participating institutions to discuss issues of mutual interest, including the possibility of repurposing IMF policies to provide support, in an innovative way, to small and middle-income countries like Botswana during periods of economic recession. For specific issues related to the Bank and Botswana’s economic and policy developments, the Governor engaged closely with relevant departments of the IMF.
Discussions focused on, cooperation and capacity building initiatives, as well as the provision of technical assistance in areas such as balance of payments, banking supervision and payment systems. Mr Ajay Banga underscored 3 the need for strengthened multilateral cooperation and policy coordination to safeguard global economic stability. Mr Banga underscored the WBG’s renewed mission to make job creation the cornerstone of development, stability, and dignity.
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He cautioned that the world is undergoing a major demographic shift: by 2050, about 85 percent of the global population will live in developing countries, and billions of young people, particularly across Africa, will be entering the labour market. He noted that while this presents an unprecedented opportunity for growth and innovation, it also poses a pressing challenge, as insufficient job creation could heighten risks of instability and migration. According to the October 2025 World Economic Outlook, released during the meetings, global output growth is forecast at 3.2 percent for 2025 and 3.1 percent for 2026, slightly lower than the 3.3 percent in 2024, with Sub[1]Saharan Africa expected to grow by 4.1 percent in 2025 and 4.4 percent in 2026.
Global inflation is 4 projected at 4.2 percent in 2025 and 3.7 percent in 2026, varying across regions, with advanced economies seeing upward pressures from changes in regulated prices and tariffs, while emerging and developing economies experience declining inflation due to weaker demand. In responding to inflation dynamics, participants underscored the importance of central bank transparency and clear communication to enhance the predictability of inflation outcomes, policy responses, transmission channels and associated risks. It was further emphasised that safeguarding macroeconomic and financial stability requires strong economic institutions (notably independent central banks), fiscal adjustments to ensure debt sustainability, efficient mobilisation of domestic resources, and pro-growth investments while preserving social cohesion. For central banks, the deliberations focused on the need to remain committed to their mandate of maintaining price stability.
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