Today, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Janez Janša, attended the opening day of the Annual World Bank Conference on Development Economics (ABCDE) at Bled. In his address, he stressed that expert findings by professionals can be deemed successful if they contribute to faster development and economic growth in practice.

 

(Photo: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000)

 

According to the PM, the role of the private sector in development has never been more to the fore "Sustainable development and rapid and comprehensive improvement in undeveloped and developing countries entail economic, social, political and institutional mechanisms which need to involve both public and private sectors."

 

It is the task of development economics to find answers to questions of how to improve the standard of living of people in developing and undeveloped countries. "The annual conference is an opportunity for development economists to present their views on the problems of sustainable development in today's world," said the PM, expressing satisfaction over the fact that this year's conference has placed Bled alongside cities such as Brussels, Amsterdam and Tokyo, capitals which hosted ABCDEs in the last three years.

 

Mr Janša stressed that the World Bank is the driving force behind the development of professionals in development economics, and at the same time the chief source of financial aid and expertise for undeveloped and developing countries. "Although the needs are still great, while aid is almost always too scarce, the achievements of the World Bank since its foundation to date speak for themselves. An organisation with 184 member states has done a great deal in reducing the world's problems."

 

The PM also said that Slovenia had never been in a better economic position. "We are rightly expected to help other countries by providing financial assistance, experience and know-how," he said, adding that Slovenia is aware of the hard work which would be necessary to achieve long-term goals. According to Mr Janša, poverty and social exclusion are not problems of undeveloped and developing countries only. "We are striving to eliminate poverty in Slovenia, or at least reduce it as far as possible, and in recent years, the trends have been positive," concluded the PM.

 

Speech by the Prime Minister