RIYADH — A two-day inaugural annual global Conference on Emerging Market Economies, which concluded in AlUla on Monday, emphasized the importance of unity of purpose and the need to continue working together to sustain emerging market economies' resilience to shocks and sustain growth. "Over the past two days, we have discussed how emerging economies can navigate the risks and, importantly, how they can embrace the opportunities ahead," said Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva in a joint statement after the conference, which was co-hosted by the Saudi Ministry of Finance and IMF. "We would like to thank emerging markets policymakers, academics, and representatives of the regional and international financial institutions for joining us and helping to make this first-ever AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies a successful forum for building greater collaboration and discussing the specific challenges facing emerging markets (EMs)," they said. "We are proud to have co-hosted the first global forum that is focused solely on the economic prospects for emerging market economies, and we look forward to continuing the discussions in the year ahead and at the second AlUla conference next year," Al-Jadaan and Georgieva said while noting that the conference came out with three takeaways. First, this is a time of sweeping transformations — from technology to trade or climate to capital flows — and these changes are reshaping the global economy. How all these changes will unfold remains to be seen. But we know that in a more uncertain and shock-prone world, building resilience through sound macroeconomic and financial policies must continue to be a priority. Second, emerging markets are seizing these transformations to make their economies stronger. With widespread digitalization and ambitious policies, the prospects for harnessing the benefits of AI are promising. Tapping the potential of AI would enhance emerging market economies' productivity and resilience, but it will require reforms to boost investments in digital infrastructure and human capital. Deeper regional trade and financial integration would also be important. Third, while these transformations offer great opportunities, we must work together to help avoid the very real risk of some countries falling behind. The first line of defense will, of course, be strong domestic policies and reforms to help seize these opportunities. However, the international community can also support countries and reduce the risk of growing divergence.
