Call for papers: 6th World Bank/IFS/ODI Public Finance Conference

6th World Bank/IFS/ODI Public Finance Conference

Driving Progress: Public Finance and Structural Transformation

September 26-27, 2024, in Washington, DC | Submission by April 15th, 2024 

As low- and middle-income countries grow, the structure of production, trade and employment changes; it is imperative for public finance policies to evolve in tandem with these changes. Depending on a country’s development model and natural resources, growth takes different forms, but it typically consists of an expansion of manufacturing and tertiary sectors, diversification of trade, and more limited reliance on primary sectors. Growth is also accompanied by increasing formalization of firms and employment, human capital accumulation and demographic shifts. The mix of tax instruments, the structure of unemployment insurance, and the financing of pension systems hence need to adapt in the process of structural change – and might also have an important role in fostering those changes.

We welcome paper submissions, from both micro and macro perspectives, that relate to the conference theme and inform policy design in low and middle-income countries, including on the following topics:

• Tax policies suitable for lower-income countries on a growth trajectory;
• Fiscal policy aimed at promoting structural transformation, including industrial policy;
• Fiscal and Labor market policies addressing high informality / promoting rapid formalization;
• Design of government pensions systems in low and middle-income countries;
• Unemployment insurance design in lower-income countries, and the transformation of unemployment systems along the development path.

Keynote speaker: Chang Tai Hsieh, Phyllis and Irwin Winkelried Distinguished Service Professor of Economics, University of Chicago, Booth School of Business.

Format: The conference will take place in person in Washington, DC, with streaming for non-presenting attendees. Presenters are expected to join in person. The organizers will arrange travel and accommodation for invited presenters. 

Submission: We invite researchers from both academic and policy institutions to submit a paper (preferable) or an extended abstract of two or more pages by April 15th, 2024, by uploading here. 

We aim to notify the authors of selected papers by May 2024.

Committee:  Jaffar Al Rikabi, Annette Alstadsæter, Pierre Bachas, Anne Brockmeyer, Pablo Garriga, François Gerard, Hazel Granger, Jonas Hjort, Christopher Hoy, Oyebola Okunogbe, David Phillips, Thiago Scot, Mahvish Shaukat, Dario Tortarolo, Yani Tyskerud, Mazhar Waseem.

For more information, please visit the 2024 Conference website.