How it started: Following a visit to Saudi Arabia in October 2022, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva announced a significant milestone in the IMF’s partnership with the region: the establishment of an IMF Regional Office in Riyadh. The office officially launched its operations in April 2024, marked by a two-day conference co-organized with the Ministry of Finance of Saudi Arabia on Industrial Policy for Diversification.
Objectives: The overarching objective of the IMF Regional Office in Riyadh is to support economic policymaking and reforms in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and, more broadly, in the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP) region. This support includes fostering capacity development (CD) and facilitating dialogue with policymakers while engaging with academics, experts, and other stakeholders.
Our staff
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- Abdoul Aziz Wane, Director, IMF Regional Office in Riyadh
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- Balazs Csonto, Deputy Director, IMF Regional Office in Riyadh
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- Ismail Meghfour, Protocol Officer, IMF Regional Office in Riyadh
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- Abdulaziz Alhomaidi, Office Manager, IMF Regional Office in Riyadh
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- Ghadah Alsufyani, Administrative Assistant, IMF Regional Office in Riyadh
Address
Ministry of Finance, 4011 Eastern Ring Branch Rd, Al Izdihar, Riyadh 12488-
Workshop on Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
The Regional Office in Riyadh (ROR) and the IMF’s Legal Department, in partnership with the GCC Secretariat, will conduct a workshop and outreach event for regulators and supervisors in the GCC region. This event will focus on virtual assets (VAs) and virtual asset service providers (VASPs) within the context of anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) standards. The workshop will cover several key areas, including discussions on the legal frameworks that govern VAs and VASPs. It will explore various policy options available to regulators, such as the pros and cons of regulating VAs and VASPs through licensing or registration, the possibility of banning certain activities, and implementing an absolute ban on specific practices. Participants will engage in discussions about the diverse regulatory approaches among GCC countries, providing a foundation for exploring strategies to mitigate risks associated with virtual assets. Additionally, the workshop will emphasize best practices in supervising VAs and VASPs, highlighting the importance of risk-based supervisory methods and international cooperation.
February 25, 2025
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Virtual Workshop on Direct Investment: Measurement and Compilation Issues
The Regional Office in Riyadh (ROR) and the IMF’s Statistics Department, in partnership with GCC-Stat, will be hosting a webinar. This event will underscore the importance of collection frameworks, methodology, coordination, and data dissemination. It will also include information on participating in the IMF’s Coordinated Direct Investment Survey. The target audience for this webinar includes staff from statistical offices, central banks, and other agencies involved in compiling Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) data.
February 23, 2025
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AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (AlUla, Saudi Arabia)
The AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies is an annual economic policy conference held in AlUla, Saudi Arabia, organized by the Ministry of Finance of Saudi Arabia and the IMF Regional Office in Riyadh. The conference will convene a select group of emerging markets’ ministers of finance, central bank governors, and policymakers, including public and private sector leaders, representatives from international institutions, and members of academia. It will offer a unique platform to exchange views on domestic, regional, and global economic developments and discuss policies and reforms to spur inclusive prosperity and build resilience supported by strong international cooperation.
February 16, 2025
Our Region
Algeria, Kingdom of Bahrain, Djibouti, Arab Republic of Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, West Bank and Gaza, Republic of Yemen.
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