The conference will comprise two panel discussions. The first panel will examine the factors having an adverse effect on global economic growth and will seek solutions to tackle them. The second panel will discuss the role of economic policies in promoting economic growth and competitiveness.
The venue of the 8 November event is the National Library of Latvia, Mūkusalas iela 3, Riga. The conference will begin at 10:30, whereas registration will start at 9:30.
Mārtiņš Kazāks, Governor of Latvijas Banka, Member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) will open and close the conference. Prior to the panel discussions, Philip R. Lane, Member of the ECB's Executive Board, will make a keynote speech.
The first panel discussion "Unravelling the Puzzle of Sluggish Productivity Growth: Lessons Learned and Future Prospects for Europe" will focus on the reasons behind the sustained deceleration in potential growth of global economy. Experts will explore the role of innovation, the trade-off between economic resilience and growth, and the effectiveness of various policy interventions in strengthening the potential economic growth. Moderator of the discussion – Ilze Nagla, journalist and Brussels correspondent for the Latvian Television; panellists: Mārtiņš Kazāks, Governor of Latvijas Banka and Member of the ECB's Governing Council, Philip R. Lane, Member of the ECB's Executive Board, Philippe Aghion, economist and professor at Collège de France.
The second panel discussion "Policy Prescriptions for Sustainable Growth" will focus on the role of economic policies in promoting economic growth and competitiveness. The discussion will also extend to the role of taxation and structural policies in facilitating long-term growth. Moderator of the panel discussion – Elina Ribakova, economist at Peterson Institute for International Economics and Bruegel think-tank; panellists: Anders Borg, Former Minister of Finance of Sweden, Morten Hansen, Head of Economics Department and Vice-Chairman of the Fiscal Discipline Council of Latvia, Klaus Masuch, Principal Adviser of the ECB's Directorate General Economics, Niamh Moloney, professor at LSE Law School.
Live broadcast of the conference will be available on conference.bank.lv. Questions to international and Latvian experts can be addressed via sli.do platform, code #LBconference.
Detailed information on the conference as well as its live coverage will be available on the website at conference.bank.lv. The mass media are also invited to follow the discussions. The working language of the conference is English; simultaneous interpreting into Latvian will be provided.
For the attention of the mass media: on-site attendance requires a prior registration by 15:00 (Riga time) on 7 November via e-mail janis.silakalns@bank.lv.