Each year, Law, Justice and Development (LJD) week brings together World Bank Group staff, senior officials from other international financial institutions, international development practitioners, government officials, lawyers, judges, scholars and representatives from civil society. As in previous years, LJD Week 2014 was an event co-organized by the Legal Departments of the World Bank Group. It also involved the collaboration and participation of the 150 international partners of the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development (GFLJD).
GLOBAL FORUM DAYS
The first two days of LJD Week were devoted to the legal dimensions to the post-2015 development agenda, and were organized into three parallel sub-themes:
- Financing the post-2015 development agenda.
- Implementing the post-2015 development agenda.
- Social and economic equity in the post-2015 development agenda.
Each sub-theme was organized coherently to explore the topic in detail, and each sub-theme generated an issue paper identifying the issues discussed, and the key points of agreement and dialogue.
EUROPE DAY
Each year, LJD Week takes an in-depth look at legal, economic and social developments in a particular country or region. The past four years have focused on Brazil, China, India, and Africa. This year, LJD Week focused on Europe. The day included an exploration of how we think of “Europe” ranging from the European Union to accession countries, to all of continental Europe. Europe Day included the following four themes:
- Europe as a contributor to the global development agenda.
- Addressing poverty and shared prosperity within Europe.
- The ongoing financial crisis in Europe.
- Migration into and within Europe.
Partners included the European Commission, European Parliament, European Court of Justice, European Central Bank, in collaboration with Italian Central Bank; Council of Europe, European Investment Bank; European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; and European universities and law schools.
IFI DAY
The annual General Counsel’ Roundtable brought together the heads of the legal departments of International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in an interactive format to discuss issues of common interest. General Counsel of other IFIs suggested possible topics for the Roundtable. There was an open session and a closed session, together adding up to one half day of discussions. In parallel, other representatives of IFIs addressed topics that were most relevant to their organizations and their work.
WORLD BANK GROUP DAY
World Bank Group day is specifically reserved for lawyers working in the World Bank Group, and was devoted to issues of specific interest to them, including operational issues, institutional dynamics, and the role of the new Global Practice Groups.
NEW FORMATS
To maximize learning outcomes, LJD Week 2014 experimented with a variety of new formats. These included:
- Experts on Call: practical guidance on law or justice reform projects. Participants can be invited to ask pertinent technical questions in one-on-one 15 minute sessions.
- Master Class: highly interactive workshops run by a trained facilitator and a seasoned expert allows experts to communicate experiential knowledge and know-how.
- TED-Style Talk: a series of informative, inspiring, energetic, 18-minute talks on “burning topics,” innovations, and personal challenges faced in engaging clients, or shaping change on the ground.
- Knowledge Café: an open discussion on a topic of mutual interest aimed to surface collective knowledge, and facilitate sharing of experiences, ideas and insights.