Academiegebouw

Thursday February 23rd 2012

11:30 - 18:00

Cutback or Invest?

The Government's Dilemma During Economic Crisis

Check Out Who The Speakers Are!

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Wouter Koolmees

George Gelauff

Aart Kraay

Wim Boonstra

Theme

Cutback or Invest?

The Government's Dilemma During Economic Crisis.

After a long period of economic growth in the Western world, the world economy is now heavily shivering. The effects of the economic crisis had been noted all over the world.

At the start of the crisis mainly only banks were the only institutions threatened with bankruptcy, now governments are struggling to sustain economic stability and viability.

What can be done now? Are governments strong enough to pull national economies out of their misery? Or should governments restrain from economic interference? These are important questions, which economists Friedrich von Hayek and John Maynard Keynes couldnt agree on this matter 70 years ago. Let us now stand on the shoulders of giants and explore the role of government in times of the economic crisis.

Theme

Specific Lecture Topics

George Gelauff

In his lecture George Gelauff will address the background of the current crisis in Europe, review a number of policy options to deal with the crisis and through a case study on Germany reflect on reasons why governments face considerable difficulties to solve the crisis.

Aart Kraay

In his lecture Aart Kraay will provide a presentation on the short-run effects of government spending on output, focusing on some recent research he has been doing on estimating government spending multipliers in developing countries. Giving the conference a further international scope of the subject.

Wim Boonstra

In his lecture Wim Boonstra will be talking about the alternatives to get ourselves out of the current economic crisis, and what needs to be done in order to prevent a double deeping that would lead us to another crisis in the near future.

Speakers

Aart Kraay

Aart Kraay

George Gelauff

Wim Boonstra

Wouter Koolmees

AART KRAAY is a Lead Economist in the Development Research Group at the World Bank. He joined the Bank in 1995 after earning a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University, and a B.Sc. in economics from the University of Toronto.

His research interests include international capital movements, growth and inequality, governance, and the Chinese economy. He has also worked for the China department of the World Bank and was a team member of the 2001 World Development Report 'Building Institutions for Markets'.

He has taught courses in macroeconomics, international economics, and growth at Georgetown University, the Sloan School of Management at MIT, and the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Lead Economist

George Gelauff

Aart Kraay

George Gelauff

Wim Boonstra

Wouter Koolmees

George Gelauff is Deputy Director at CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. He graduated in 1977 from Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam (Econometrics) and then received his Doctorial degree in Economics at Universiteit van Tilburg (1992).

From 1979 till 1987 he was a researcher in the CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. In 1987 he became a unit head in CPB and was at that position until 1998. From 1998 till 2001 he was in the Head department Institutional Analysis (CPB) . In 2001 he was appointed Deputy director Economic Policy Department at the Ministry of Economic Affairs. In 2004 he returned to CPB Nederlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis when he was responsible for the Head Sector International Economics. In October 2006 he was appointed deputy director of the CPB Nederlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis, which is his current position.

He has numerous publications for the CPB Nederlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. The main topics of his publications are International Economic, Scenarios and forecasts, Government and Productivity. Gelauff is the co-author of the CPB book Europe in Crisis. CPB on debts and the future of the euro. which is written for the wide public and main topics are the causes of the current crisis and what measures are to be implemented so that a future crisis can be avoided.

Deputy Director

Wim Boonstra

Aart Kraay

George Gelauff

Wim Boonstra

Wouter Koolmees

Wim Boonstra is Executive Vice-President and Chief Economist of Rabobank Nederland. He

also teaches Money and Banking at the Free University in Amsterdam.

Wim was educated at the Free University in Amsterdam (Economics, cum laude, 1985) and

studied General Management at the Harvard Business School (AMP 160, 2001).

After a number of positions in the field of research and investment management, Wim joined

Rabobank Nederland as head of International Economic Research in June 1991. In January 1997

he was appointed Deputy Chief Economist.

From March 1996 until April 1999 Wim was also EMU project co-ordinator of the Rabobank

organisation in March 1996. In this position he was responsible for all preparations within

Rabobank for the arrival of the euro.

In January 2000 he was appointed Chief Economist of Rabobank Nederland. From September

2002 until April 2003 Wim Boonstra was project manager of the project Visie Rabobank

2005+. This project entailed a substantial reorganisation of the domestic banking business of the

Rabobank organisation. In November 2003 he was reappointed as Chief Economist of Rabobank

Nederland.

Wim Boonstra is editor of the Dutch economic series "Financial en Monetary Studies" and

member of the editorial Board of Banking Review, a Dutch journal on banking issues. He has

published numerous articles on banking, financial markets, international economics, business

cycles and European Integration. In 1990 he won a Special Merit Award in the American Express

Award Competition.

Wim Boonstra is also a board member of the Dutch Royal Society of Economic Affairs.

Chief Economist

Wouter Koolmees

Aart Kraay

George Gelauff

Wim Boonstra

Wouter Koolmees

Wouter Koolmees is a former member of ECU’92. He studied Social and Institutional Economics at the Utrecht University, during his studies he was part of a research group called: Nederlands Economisch Instituut.

In 2003 he moved on to a career in the Ministery of Finance, where he focused on the labour market, social security and pension funds. In 2008 he was promoted to Head of the Budget Policy, position he kept until joining the Dutch progressive and social-liberal party, D66, in June 2010.

He is currently a member of parliament holding one of D66's ten seats in the House of Representatives.

Member of Parliament

Programme

Programme of the day.

11:30 - 12:30 Walk in, subscription and lunch

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12:30 - 12:40 Opening by the Chairman of the day and Chairman of the Conference Committee in the Aula.

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12:45 - 13:25 Contribution by George Gelauff

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13:30 - 14:15 Contribution by Wouter Koolmees

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14:15 - 14:40 Coffee Break

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14:40 - 15:25 Video Conference with Aart Kraay from Washington D.C.

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15:30 - 16:15 Wim Boonstra on " How to overcome the current crisis and prevent the next one"

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16:20 - 17:15 Pannel discussion led by Hans Schenk (USE) with Wim Boonstra, Frank den Butter (VU), Joan Muyskens (UM)

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17:15 - 17:20 Closing of the Conference by the Chairman of the day and Chairman of the Conference Committee

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17:25 - 18:00 Network drinks

Event

Where? Academiegebouw Utrecht When? February 23rd 2011 at 11:30 until 18:00 Dress Code? Business Casual

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The team

Who Are We?

Jorrit Hendriksma - Coordinator of External Affairs.

ECU'92 Board.

Thomas Maas - Chairman of the ECU'92 Board.

Lisa van de Voort - Chairman of the Committee

Anna Mosiychuk - Coordinator of Speakers

Malvin Bernard - Company Coordinator

Sjoerd Geukers - Location Coordinator

Georgia Stoyanova - Coordinator of Promotion

Daniel Portabella - Coordinator of Promotion

Jamila Mamedova - Coordinator of Finance