BADEN-BADEN: Governments are slacking the pace of needed economic reforms amid waning popular support even as global growth slows, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) warned Friday.
There had been progress in reducing unemployment, the rich nations’ club conceded in its annual “Going for Growth” report, unveiled at a G-20 gathering of top economies’ finance ministers in the western German spa town of Baden-Baden.
But too many, including women, migrants and young people remain excluded from the benefits of a tentative economic recovery in many advanced and emerging economies, the OECD experts said.
“In many countries what we are seeing is a slow growth track,” OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria told journalists at the G-20 gathering.
“Poor growth outcomes combined with rising inequality, falling trust, stagnant incomes are contributing to a backlash against globalization... which is bringing a rise in populist and protectionist policies,” he continued. “It is precisely because of this context that ambitious reforms are needed, to escape the low growth trap.”
The growing political potency of inequality prompted the OECD to offer for the first time advice to countries on making growth “inclusive,” alongside its long-standing productivity and employment goals.
Reforms had visibly slowed, both in countries that had made significant progress in recent years — such as Mexico, Ireland and Spain — and others like Colombia, Italy and Sweden, already among the “least active” reformers, the economists found.
While more countries had moved to lift barriers to women working and cut taxes on lower-paid workers, many focused on one area to the exclusion of complementary ones, they said.
Looking ahead, the OECD recommends improving productivity by broadening access to education, training and jobs, freeing up competition, and increasing investment in public infrastructure.
Meanwhile, social safety nets should be used to reduce income inequality, the experts advised.
“Growing inequality becomes an obstacle to growth,” said OECD chief. “It is not just morally wrong, it is ethically wrong, it is politically very explosive, but it is also economically very inefficient.”
Gurria, a former finance minister of Mexico, insisted that gatherings like the G-20 remain relevant even as the new White House administration under Donald Trump challenges a tried-and-tested multilateral global order.
Inequality stokes populism: OECD chief
Inequality stokes populism: OECD chief
The Family Office to host global investment summit in Saudi Arabia
RIYADH: The Family Office, one of the Gulf’s leading wealth management firms, will host its exclusive investment summit, “Investing Is a Sea,” from Jan. 29 to 31 on Shura Island along Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.
The event comes as part of the Kingdom’s broader Vision 2030 initiative, reflecting efforts to position Saudi Arabia as a global hub for investment dialogue and strategic economic development.
The summit is designed to offer participants an immersive environment for exploring global investment trends and assessing emerging opportunities and challenges in a rapidly changing financial landscape.
Discussions will cover key themes including shifts in the global economy, the role of private markets in portfolio management, long-term investment strategies, and the transformative impact of artificial intelligence and advanced technologies on investment decision-making and risk management, according to a press release issued on Sunday.
Abdulmohsin Al-Omran, founder and CEO of The Family Office, will deliver the opening remarks, with keynote addresses from Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and Prince Turki Al-Faisal, chairman of the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies.
The press release said the event reflects the firm’s commitment to institutional discipline, selective investment strategies, and long-term planning that anticipates economic cycles.
The summit will bring together prominent international and regional figures, including former UK Treasury Commercial Secretary Lord Jim O’Neill, Mohamed El-Erian, chairman of Gramercy Fund Management, Abdulrahman Al-Rashed, chairman of the editorial board at Al Arabiya, Lebanese Minister of Economy and Trade Dr. Amer Bisat, economist Nouriel Roubini of NYU Stern School of Business, Naim Yazbeck, president of Microsoft Middle East and Africa, John Pagano, CEO of Red Sea Global, Dr. Anne-Marie Imafidon, MBE, co-founder of Stemettes, SRMG CEO Jomana R. Alrashed and other leaders in finance, technology, and investment.
With offices in Bahrain, Dubai, Riyadh, and Kuwait, and through its Zurich-based sister company Petiole Asset Management AG with a presence in New York and Hong Kong, The Family Office has established a reputation for combining institutional rigor with innovative, long-term investment strategies.
The “Investing Is a Sea” summit underscores Saudi Arabia’s growing role as a global center for financial dialogue and strategic investment, reinforcing the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 objective of fostering economic diversification and sustainable development.
