IMF-WBG Annual Meetings 2024 – Governor Monticelli’s Statement to the Development Committee (Washington DC, 25 October 2024)

The CEB welcomes the World Bank's ambition to be "future ready", embracing a bolder and more adaptable approach to meeting its clients' needs. The CEB is also undertaking efforts to become even more fit for purpose. With the support of its 43 shareholders and guided by its Strategic Framework 2023-2027, the CEB has been swiftly adapting operations to address Europe's complex and intertwined development needs while remaining true to its core mandate: fostering social cohesion and serving the most vulnerable.

MDB collaboration reached new heights in 2024

The past year has been a momentous one for MDBs in terms of the progress made individually and together as a system to deepen collaboration for greater impact and scale for the benefit of the regions we serve. We have acted strategically and selectively about when and how we work together, and this has already produced tangible results. For instance, by increasing mutual reliance on procurement practices, we have facilitated the joint-financing of investment projects to the benefit of our clients.

This has enabled us to better support countries in their pursuit of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while also fulfilling the increasingly important role of MDBs in financing global public goods.

The CEB therefore welcomes the special attention paid in the "2024 Update Report to Governors - A Future-Ready World Bank Group" to the objective of further deepening partnerships with organisations, including regional MDBs such as the CEB, in line with the recommendations of the G20 "Roadmap Towards Better, Bigger and More Effective MDBs".

The G20's active engagement in the MDB reform agenda continues to play an important role in giving impetus to this process, providing valuable guidance as we strive to maximise our impact and build on progress made.

Building on this success through 2025 is paramount

The enhanced collaboration among MDBs is here to stay, and the CEB is pleased to carry the momentum forward as it assumes the chairmanship of the Group of Heads of MDBs in 2025.

Looking ahead, the stakes remain high, particularly when considering the unmet financing needs for achieving the SDGs and addressing climate action, which are estimated to run into the trillions of dollars annually. The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development - to be held in Seville, Spain, in June 2025 - is a key opportunity to reach consensus at the highest political level on the necessary actions to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs.

Time is running out; 2030 is tomorrow. The economic and social cost of inaction would far exceed the costs of meeting these investment needs. Not doing so could not only hinder future progress but potentially derail the progress achieved so far. And of course, the vulnerable members of society would suffer most.

The MDBs, by leveraging their individual mandates and collective strengths as well as their partnerships with other development actors, can play a unique role in accelerating investments in sustainable development.

The CEB is evolving to meet Europe's social needs

The CEB is actively delivering on the commitments of its Strategic Framework 2023-2027, despite a challenging international environment. The Framework was strengthened by CEB shareholders' recent approval of the Bank's first-ever capital increase with paid-in capital of up to €1.2 billion, and the regaining of the Bank's triple-A rating with all major credit rating agencies.

In Ukraine, the CEB's newest member state since June 2023, the Bank is already disbursing resources for projects in healthcare and housing in favour of vulnerable people. In other member states, the Bank continues to respond to the most pressing social needs. Overall, the CEB approves annually 40-50 projects amounting to over €4 billion. The Bank, in line with its statutory priorities, also supports victims of natural disasters. In Türkiye, for example, the CEB reacted swiftly to the devastating earthquakes of 2023, helping to build emergency hospitals. Similarly, in Iceland, the Bank took rapid action to assist people displaced by volcanic eruptions in 2024. These efforts underline the CEB's enhanced capacity for timely and impactful interventions across its member states.

On the funding side, in 2024 the CEB passed the €10 billion mark in total Social Inclusion Bond (SIB) issuance for the first time since its social bonds were launched in 2017. SIBs allow the Bank to raise resources for projects that deliver high social impact. They now account for about 40% of the CEB's annual funding, which totalled €7 billion in 2023, helping to solidify the Bank's position as a leader in the international social bond market. The CEB is committed to pursuing its social mission through both lending and funding strategies and effectively leveraging both sides of its balance sheet.

The CEB is committed to playing its full role in the MDBs system

At this critical juncture, the CEB will continue to adapt to new challenges, and be even more fit for purpose as it strives to meet its mandate of strengthening Europe's social fabric by deploying its resources and technical expertise where social needs are most pressing.

The Bank takes pride in working alongside other development partners and is committed to playing its role in the Group of Heads of MDBs to ensure that our deepening collaboration will continue to maximise impact and deliver concrete results.

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