PMCG CEO Leads Panel Sessions at ICGFM 2022 International Conference

On September 19-23, the International Consortium on Governmental Financial Management (ICGFM) hosted its 2022 international conference for the global public finance management (PFM) community at the University Club of Washington, D.C., where topical and forward-thinking presentations were delivered, and interactive sessions were provided focusing on common challenges and innovative approaches to all aspects of economic governance and the PFM cycle.

PMCG, as a proud supporter and participant of the conference, organized the following two panel sessions at the conference: “Introducing the New Pragmatic Program Budgeting (PBB) (Overcoming Design Obstacles to Planning, Management, and Control)” and “Russia’s Brutal Aggression Against Ukraine: Consequences and Ways Toward Recovery.” Both were moderated by Aleksi Aleksishvili, CEO and Chairman of PMCG and Vice-President-elect of the ICGFM.

Russia’s Brutal Aggression Against Ukraine: Consequences and Ways Toward Recovery

We have been supporting Ukraine for many years to advance as a democratic country and we are committed to continuing this work. Indeed, this year we were particularly honored to organize the special closing session of the conference, covering Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine and its impact on the global economy and specific countries.

The large-scale and brutal attack on Ukraine has shocked the world.  Indeed, the war is the most significant in Europe since the Second World War and has cruelly exposed the vulnerability of global security and the importance of unity among democratic countries.

“This war is not just between two countries, and this is not merely a regional conflict. This is a conflict that has global implications for security, energy, and food security, as well as supply chains and transport corridors,”

said Aleksishvili.

Amid the chaos and carnage, it is important to somehow gather a clear picture of the current state of the infrastructure and economic arteries of Ukraine. With this in mind, we were grateful to special guest Ms. Iryna Koshel-Repnevska, Director of the Reform Support Team at the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine, who joined the session at the last minute directly from Kiev. She followed Aleksishvili’s opening remarks, by discussing the topic of “Infrastructure Postwar Recovery.”

“The war in Ukraine is not a war about territories. This is an existential issue for Russia itself. What Putin is concerned by is the idea of a successful and prosperous Ukraine, as an alternative to Russia in the Eurasian region. This is the threat. So, winning this war for Ukraine does not only mean a military victory, but also means creating a truly democratic, developed, healthy, and prosperous country. The question is: how can this be done?”

said Aleksishvili.

To ensure a comprehensive and informed analysis of the topic at hand, for this panel session, we invited the following four distinguished participants boasting rich experience in various fields including government finance, investment, and the business environment: Natalie Jaresko (Former Minister of Finance of Ukraine); Dr. Irina Paliashvili (President and Senior Counsel, RULGUkrainian Legal Group, Washington, D.C./Kyiv); Alexander Gordin (Co-founder and Chairman of the Board of the Rebuilding Ukraine Agency and of Broad Street Capital Group); and Dr. Tetiana Iefymenko (President, Academy of Financial Management, Ukraine).

During this session, panelists discussed not only the war and the current situation but addressed the question of how Ukraine can overcome the ongoing crisis and what governments, international organizations, businesses, professional groups, and civil society organizations can do to assist.

Ms. Jaresko assessed the macroeconomic situation and financial standing of the country, outlined how Ukraine can endure its budget deficit and why it will be difficult to privatize or remove state-owned enterprises. Meanwhile, Dr. Paliashvili discussed the legal implications of 13 million people being displaced from their homes and whether sanctions had had an impact on the conflict. In addition, Dr. Iefymenko delivered a presentation entitled “Countering the Challenges and Threats of Public Finance Destabilization​ – Anti-Crisis Regulation under the Conditions of Martial Law and Post-War Recovery in Ukraine,”​ in which she covered fiscal resilience and transparency, as well as budgeting and taxation. Finally, Mr. Gordin spoke about the country’s financial markets, investment environment, and sovereign rating.

Participants of the session also addressed the issue of corruption and its related challenges in Ukraine, taxation and the simplification thereof, as well as shortcomings in its regulatory environment.

About the Conference

The ICGFM 2022 International Conference marked the firstopportunity in over two years for the global PFM community to gather in-person to network and connect, convening leading professionals and colleagues from across the world in a unique and distinguished setting.

The conference included 18 sessions containing keynote speeches, panel case-studies, and research presentations with over 35 speakers from various countries. Attendees included ministers of finance, accountants, auditors general, department heads, and other high-level government executives as well as financial professionals working within the PFM community.

The ICGFM is the only organization to bring together such a broad and diverse PFM community under one umbrella. It is a leading non-profit membership association, playing a unique role in the financial management community, which unites government entities, private firms, professional associations, and university departments as well as individuals devoted to improving financial management.