Washington, October 15, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
World Bank Group President Ajay Banga is set to outline the institution’s jobs-first development strategy at the closing plenary of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, with employment opportunities for a rapidly growing young population expected to be a central theme.
Banga will address finance ministers and central bank governors on Friday alongside IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. The Annual Meetings, being held from October 12 to 18, are centred on jobs, investment, growth and practical solutions for development.
Job creation has been a defining priority of Banga’s presidency. Speaking during a panel discussion on artificial intelligence and employment earlier in the week, he highlighted the scale of the challenge posed by the growing global youth population.
“I believe that the Bank’s entire focus has to be on jobs for a very simple reason: 1.2 billion young people in the coming 15 years are going to become 18 years of age,” Banga said.
He stressed the importance of private investment in generating employment, arguing that governments create the conditions for growth while businesses account for the bulk of jobs.
“Governments enable, and the private sector generates between 75% and 85% of jobs in any country,” he said.
Banga has also advocated a practical approach to artificial intelligence in emerging economies. Rather than focusing primarily on large language models, he has argued that the technology should be applied to everyday challenges in schools, healthcare systems and farming. The World Bank refers to this approach as “small AI”.
At a civil society town hall during the meetings, Banga warned that development financing was facing growing constraints as governments grappled with higher debt, limited fiscal room and pressure on aid budgets.
“Fiscal space is tighter, debt is higher, aid budgets are under pressure, and as we all know, the cost of energy and the cost of fertiliser is much higher than what it was 6 to 8 months ago,” he said.
He called for more effective use of limited public funding and pointed to the World Bank’s Philanthropy Hub, launched in Bangkok on October 12, as an initiative aimed at mobilising additional capital for development.
India, one of the World Bank’s largest borrowers and a major shareholder, has a significant stake in the institution’s development agenda. Born in Pune and educated in India, Banga assumed the World Bank presidency in June 2023 after being nominated by the United States.
His address comes as the IMF has flagged a slowdown in global growth amid energy-price shocks and elevated public debt. Georgieva is also scheduled to speak at the closing plenary, chaired by Carlos Carvallo Spalding, president of the Central Bank of Paraguay.
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