Dr. Reza Baqir, a former governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), has been named Senior Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy Department. The Kennedy School is Harvard University’s school of public policy and public administration.
To help countries recover from debt crises more quickly, he will be working at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government (M-RCBG) to strengthen international frameworks for doing so.
Honored to have been appointed Senior Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School of Government @HKS_BizGov. My work will focus on improving global frameworks for resolving sovereign debt crises so countries can recover faster from debt distress. https://t.co/2ErztApbrZ pic.twitter.com/O9pzXspJhH
— Reza Baqir (@rezabaqir) September 13, 2022
Harvard Kennedy School’s official website praised him for “leading Pakistan’s financial response to the Covid-19 outbreak,” which resulted in a rapid economic comeback while simultaneously reducing public debt and safeguarding foreign exchange reserves over 2020-21.
To encourage innovation and broaden access to the financial system, “he also undertook several measures to digitize Pakistan’s financial industry during his stint as governor.”
Roshan Digital Accounts, a new regulatory framework to license digital banks in Pakistan, the Roast platform, and the loosening of Pakistan’s foreign exchange regulatory environment have all contributed to a surge of foreign investments in startups and fintech.
According to the website, he also oversaw the introduction of a strategy called “Banking on Equality” to improve women’s access to financial services.
According to the report, the economy was stabilized after Reza successfully negotiated a new IMF program in June 2019 and six following evaluations. He oversaw the adoption of a flexible exchange rate regime and amendments to the law governing the central bank that increased its autonomy during this period.
Mahnur is MS(development Studies)Student at NUST University, completed BS Hons in Eng Literature. Content Writer, Policy analyst, Climate Change specialist, Teacher, HR Recruiter.
