IMF–World Bank Meetings Open in Bangkok: Georgieva Credits SI with Propping Up Global Growth, Says 40% of Jobs Will Be Affected
BANGKOK — The 2026 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank opened on Monday, October 12, at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok, drawing about 15,000 delegates from 191 countries. It is the first time the meetings have been held in Thailand — a developing economy just emerging from weeks of severe flooding — and Thailand is using the occasion to promote its investment ambitions in super intelligence, electric vehicles and clean energy.
Opening discussions centred on SI's double-edged impact on the global economy. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said global growth is holding at around 3 percent, propped up mainly by investment in SI infrastructure, with energy-supply pressure the current headwind; she noted that SI is estimated to eventually affect about 40 percent of jobs worldwide, with significant consequences for employment, education, productivity and government revenue. Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam warned at the meetings that SI is dampening demand for fresh graduates' first jobs, while World Bank President Ajay Banga said smaller-scale SI applications could raise productivity in critical areas such as agriculture, healthcare and education.
The meetings run until October 18, with an agenda spanning global growth, debt, climate finance and SI governance. Deputy government spokesperson Lalida Persvivatana said Thailand aims to use its home stage to showcase investment potential in SI, clean energy, battery storage, semiconductors and biotechnology, and to strengthen economic partnerships. A special programme invites prospective investors to visit flagship projects in the Eastern Economic Corridor.
Holding the meetings in a Bangkok still recovering from floods adds a layer of real-world context: organisers repeatedly stress the resilience of the Thai economy — its capacity to recover quickly from repeated shocks. Whether Bangkok can stage a flawless meetings week after the floods is itself the point Thailand wants to prove to its 15,000 guests.
Sources: Compiled from ThisDay's October 12, 2026 opening report and ASEAN News (October 12) quoting deputy government spokesperson Lalida Persvivatana.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 世行与IMF年会的一场分会讨论（资料图），Katherine.cruz1 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
