Bangkok selected to host the IMF-World Bank joint meeting in 2026
Thailand will also host the annual meetings of the boards of governors of the World Bank Group and the IMF in 2026. The joint meeting is expected to draw about 12,000 people from around the globe.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have chosen Bangkok as the site for their annual joint meeting in 2026, Minister of Finance Arkhom Tempittayapaisith said on Wenesday.
Thailand will also host the annual meetings of the boards of governors of the World Bank Group and the IMF in 2026, Arkhom said.
The joint meeting is expected to draw about 12,000 people from around the globe.
The annual meeting is attended by finance ministers from the World Bank’s 189 member countries and central bank governors of the IMF’s 190 member countries. Executives from international financial institutions and organisations, both public and private, also attend the meeting.
Thailand was among 10 countries that had expressed interest in hosting the joint meeting, he said, after returning from a meeting of the development committee of the two bodies in Washington last week.
The World Bank sent a team to Bangkok last December to assess its readiness to host the 2026 meeting, while the decision to select Bangkok was made on April 10 at a joint meeting of the governors of the World Bank and IMF, Arkhom said.
The meeting provides a forum for member countries of both bodies to discuss the global economic and financial situation, poverty reduction, job creation, climate change, the transition to a digital economy, and fostering sustainable economic growth and development through cooperation.
It is held in October of each year.
Morocco will host this year's annual meeting, while Washington will host the meetings in 2024 and 2025.
Bangkok hosted the annual meeting once before, in 1991.
Hosting the 2026 meeting will provide Thailand with the opportunity to play a key role in supporting the operations of international financial institutions and promote economic cooperation at both the regional and sub-regional levels, Arkhom said.
It will also serve as a platform to promote policies and developments that benefit the country, and showcase Thailand's readiness to host international meetings.
Parallel meetings will take place during the meeting between member countries and leading international financial institutions.
