WBG-IE University Conference / Growth and Resilience in Connected Economies

CONFERENCE AGENDA

Day 1: May 7, 2026

10.00-11.30      Session 1: Welcome and Keynote

Welcome Remarks

• Manuel Muñiz, Rector, IE University
• Alfonso Garcia Mora, Vice President, Europe, Latin America & The Caribbean, IFC

Keynote Adress: Industrial Policy for Networks of Firms

The opening keynote will examine how trade and production networks shape aggregate productivity, welfare, and regional development, drawing on recent advances in trade and regional economics.

• Speaker: Dave Donaldson (MIT)
• Moderator: Chiara Criscuolo (OECD)

11.30-12.00      Coffee

12-00-13.30      Session 2: Knowledge and Technology Diffusion

The session will explore how production networks act as channels for knowledge transmission, how diffusion differs across firms and countries, and what this implies for upgrading in developing economies.

• Chair:  Marco Giarratana (IE University)
• Speakers:
  • Gianmarco Ottaviano (Bocconi)
  • Yulu Tang (London School of Economics)
  • Andreas Moxnes (University of Oslo)
• Discussant: Luis Diestre (IE University)

13.30-14.30      Lunch

14:30-16.00      Session 3: Upgrading Supply Chains: The Role of Enabling Sectors

Production networks rely on enabling sectors that reduce frictions, improve coordination, and expand market access. The session highlights how investments in logistics, infrastructure, and market institutions can unlock upgrading along value chains — with important implications for private sector development strategies.

• Chair: Pedro Gete (IE University)
• Speakers:
  • Cian Ruane (Bank of Ireland)
  • Ameet Morjaria (MIT)
  • Ebehi Iyoha (Harvard)

• Discussant: Manuel García-Santana (UPF)

16.00-16.30      Coffee

16.30-18.00      Session 4: Policy/Business Panel

This panel will bridge research and practice. With perspectives from development finance, industrial policy, credit market institutions, and business networks, the discussion will focus on questions related to how policy can strengthen domestic supplier linkages; how to crowd in private investment into production networks; how to balance competitiveness with resilience in a fragmented global environment.

•  Panelists:
  • Chris Woodruff (University of Oxford and BII)
  • Roman Arjona (European Commission DG GROW)
  • Elena Herrero-Beaumont (Inbonis Rating)
  • Núria Vilanova (CEAPI)

• Moderator: Martin Raiser, Senior Representative for Europe, WBG

19-20.30 Visit to Palacio de Liria (by invitation only)

21.00 Dinner (by invitation only)

Day 2 – May 8, 2026

9:00-10:00         Session 5: Keynote Address Global Innovation with Global Firms

This keynote will examine the opportunities for growth and innovation in an interconnected world, and the importance of capable firms, efficient markets, and strong institutions for seizing those opportunities. It will draw implications for growth, trade and industrial policy through the lens of how heterogeneous firms participate and interact in global production networks.

• Speaker: Kalina Manova (UCL)
• Moderator: Paolo Mauro, Deputy Chief Economist and Director of Private Markets, WBG

10.00-11.30      Session 6: Competition, Platforms, and Networks

The session will explore how the rise of digital platforms, concentration, and competitive dynamics affect supplier access, market power, and opportunities for upgrading — raising key policy questions related to competition and regulation.

• Chair: TBC
• Speakers:
  • Juan Santalo (IE University)
  • Julia Cajal Grossi (Geneva Graduate Institute)
  • Martina Kirchberger (Trinity College Dublin)

• Discussant: Annamaria Conti (IE University)

11.30-12.00 Coffee

12.00-13.30       Session 7: Geoeconomics and Production Networks

The session will examine how the evolving geoeconomic environment is reshaping production networks and will highlight the policy trade-offs involved in strengthening resilience while preserving long-term productivity growth.

• Chair:  Roumeen Islam, Senior Economic Advisor, IFC
• Speakers:
  • Basile Grassi (Bocconi)
  • Banu Demir (Oxford)
  • Matthew L. Elliott (Cambridge)

• Discussant: Davide Suverato (PSE)

13.30 Lunch and Farewell