EFSD Announces Program for 2026 International Economic Conference in Astana
The Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development (EFSD) has released the program for its International Economic Conference, "Towards Balanced Economic Development," to be held on October 29, 2026, in Astana. The conference will bring together economic policy officials, representatives of international financial institutions, and members of the expert and academic communities to discuss the key drivers of long-term growth across the Eurasian region.
The Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development (EFSD) has released the program for its International Economic Conference, "Towards Balanced Economic Development," to be held on October 29, 2026, in Astana. The conference will bring together economic policy officials, representatives of international financial institutions, and members of the expert and academic communities to discuss the key drivers of long-term growth across the Eurasian region.
The program is built around practical policy questions: achieving balanced and sustainable growth, assessing the region's growth potential, and addressing demographic change alongside the conditions needed to expand high-productivity employment.
"For the region's economies, the question today is not how to grow faster, but how to sustain growth over the next five, ten, or fifteen years," said Sergei Ulatov, Chief Economist of the EFSD. "That is why we want to bring together in Astana the people who shape economic policy, analyze it, and put it into practice. We invite colleagues to join this discussion: the more perspectives we bring together, the stronger the outcome."
The substantive program opens with a plenary session, "Maintaining momentum: Economic Policy Priorities in the New Cycle,” in which participants will examine how to balance growth-supportive measures with macroeconomic stability, along with the structural and institutional reforms needed to strengthen the region's long-term resilience.
A dedicated panel session will present the EFSD's flagship report "Economic Growth, Demography, and the Labor Market: Reality and Challenges," which draws on comparative labor market analysis across Armenia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Tajikistan. Panelists will discuss the policy challenges these labor markets present given their structural features, demographic context, and links to economic growth, with particular attention to high-productivity job creation, labor migration, and informal employment.
The afternoon will feature two round tables. The first, "Growth Potential of Eurasian Economies: Between Ambition and Reality," will assess the region's long-term growth prospects, the role of institutional, technological, and demographic conditions, and the effects of investment activity and economic reforms across the region. The program will close with a second round table, "Jobs for Growth and Growth for Jobs," examining barriers to formal private sector development, new sources of growth, the role of human capital, and incentives for high-productivity job creation.
The EFSD International Economic Conference will take place on October 29 at the Sheraton Astana Hotel. The program and concept note are available on the Fund's official information resources.
For participation inquiries, please contact RSVP@efsd.org.