Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has called for reforms to the global financial system to ensure affordable development financing, fairer representation for developing economies and faster sovereign debt resolution.
Oyedele made the call while chairing the G-24 Board of Governors meeting on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.
The meeting brought together IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank Senior Managing Director Axel van Trotsenburg, representing World Bank President Ajay Banga, and other G-24 governors to discuss mounting financial pressures on emerging and developing economies.
Oyedele said rising interest rates, widening fiscal deficits in advanced economies and increasing demand for financing artificial intelligence and energy infrastructure had made borrowing more expensive for developing countries.
He called for progress on IMF quota and governance reforms, stronger representation for developing countries at the World Bank, improved access to development finance and more predictable, coordinated debt restructuring involving all creditors.
The minister also urged expanded climate financing, stronger international tax cooperation to combat tax avoidance and illicit financial flows, and greater participation of developing countries in global decision-making, including within the G-20.
In his closing remarks, Oyedele identified three key lessons from the discussions, stressing that resilience must be built before crises occur through proactive policy preparation.
He also said artificial intelligence must be adopted and regulated responsibly to support inclusive, job-rich growth, while emphasising that international cooperation remained essential to managing shared risks, including energy insecurity, food price volatility, supply-chain disruptions, debt vulnerabilities and climate change.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva described the global economy as resilient, with growth projected at about 3.1 per cent through 2026, but warned that the outlook concealed widening disparities between economies benefiting from digital transformation, artificial intelligence investment and critical-mineral supply chains, and those constrained by high energy costs, conflict and limited access to technology.
Georgieva said persistent energy and food price pressures were keeping interest rates and debt-servicing costs elevated. She urged governments to rebuild fiscal buffers, preserve central bank independence, invest in digital infrastructure and skills, and accelerate debt treatment under the G-20 Common Framework, alongside further IMF quota reforms.
Representing the World Bank president, Senior Managing Director Axel van Trotsenburg said the institution had mobilised about 27.4 billion dollars in crisis-related financing, with ten countries activating dedicated crisis-response instruments and 19 others redirecting existing resources to urgent needs.
He also warned of El Niño-related risks to food security and grain prices, noting that the World Bank remained focused on expanding electricity access, healthcare, digital connectivity and job creation across sectors including tourism, healthcare, food systems and manufacturing.
Van Trotsenburg added that the Bank was working to mobilise private capital and climate finance to support development priorities.
Interventions by member countries reinforced calls for reforms to the international financial system. Brazil, China and Pakistan supported stronger representation for the Global South and reforms to the Bretton Woods institutions, while the Philippines called for deeper regional financial integration.
Kenya urged countries to build policy buffers and expand local-currency financing, while Egypt highlighted supply-chain disruptions and capital outflows. Lebanon and Syria also raised concerns over financing challenges facing conflict-affected economies.
Incoming G-24 chair Pakistan pledged to keep development at the centre of the group’s agenda.
The meeting concluded that domestic reforms alone would not adequately protect developing economies from external shocks, stressing the need for affordable financing, effective debt resolution, fairer representation in international institutions and sustained international cooperation.
Boluwatife Enome
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