G7 Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors' Meeting Starts in Rome Tomorrow
12/02/2009
The first ministerial session this year, with Italy holding the G8 Presidency, will be getting under way when the group's Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meet in Rome on 13 and 14 February. The meeting will be attended by the member countries of the G7 group (Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States), with the Ministers' and Governors' counterparts from the Russian Federation being invited to join in certain specific sessions. The EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, the chairman of the Eurogroup, the chairman of the European Central Bank (ECB), the Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the President of the World Bank and the chairman of the Financial Stability Forum will also be attending some of the meetings.
In a move to broaden out the dialogue on global economic issues, Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti has also invited the chairman of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), the secretary general of the OECD, the chairman of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), the director general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the secretary general of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the chairman of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
The talks are going to focus on the financial and economic crisis, and on the action required to stabilize the global economy. Thrashing out shared ground rules and countering the protectionist inclination (which tends to get stronger in times of economic difficulty) are the two guidelines underpinning the Italian Presidency's working agenda. In particular, the Ministers and Governors will be discussing how to improve the transparency and proper functioning of the markets. In a move in that direction, the Italian Presidency will be urging the adoption of a legal standard, in other words a minimum set of ground rules governing the transparency and propriety of international economic and financial activity, to which the international community as a whole should commit. The talks will also focus on boosting cooperation among market oversight and regulatory authorities, and on reform of the international financial institutions. A special session will also be devoted to the current food crisis in an effort to ensure lasting food security through the adoption of a long-term approach.
The G7 Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors' meeting will officially get under way on Friday 13 February with a working dinner at the Villa Madama, the Foreign Ministry's historic venue for hosting such events. Work will then continue on Saturday 14 February at the Palazzo delle Finanze, home to Italy's Economy and Finance Ministry.
