Babacan to visit US to attend international meetings

Babacan will visit the U.S. to attend the International Monetary Fund-World Bank Spring Meetings, as well as the G-20 Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meetings, and to make speeches during high-level thematic meetings at the United Nations, according to a written statement published by his office. 

The IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings will be held in Washington between April 17 and 19. 

Alongside ministers and central bank governors, the G-20 summit will also bring together officials from the IMF, World Bank, U.N., Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Financial Stability Board and the Bank for International Settlements, many of which have regularly worked with Babacan during his tenure.

Topics will include the global economy, the framework of development, international financial structures, investment infrastructure, financial arrangements and taxation, according to the statement. 

Babacan will also make a speech at a seminar on Islamic finance, which will be jointly organized by the G-20 and IMF, as well as during a B-20 panel, titled “To a Global Governance Mechanism,” and at a Think-20 event, which will focus on the challenges standing before the global economy and the role of the G-20. 

He will also attend a press meeting on April 17 to launch the “2015 OECD SME Scoreboard” report with OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria. 

The minister is further expected to conduct one-on-one meetings with foreign ministers, central bank heads and high-level representatives from leading international organizations, think thanks and NGOs, as well as investors and businesspeople. 

Following his Washington meetings, Babacan will visit New York to attend a special high-level meeting of ECOSOC with the World Bank, IMF, WTO and UNCTAD as the keynote speaker.

Last week Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said Babacan was unlikely to feature in the new cabinet. “I have the utmost respect for Mr. Ali [Babacan]; however, there is no separate management for the economy. There is one manager, and that is the prime minister.” 

Babacan is among the prominent figures of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) who will not be in the new government because he has reached a three-term limit that is in force in the party.