Extended and updated Course on Macrofinancial Stability in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe

After having been offered virtually in 2020 and 2021, the course Macrofinancial Stability in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe took place again as a face-to-face course this year from April 17-26 at the JVI. It was organized and delivered jointly by the Osterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB), the Joint Vienna Institute (JVI), and the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS), with the latter joining for the first time as a cooperation partner. In addition, lectures were also provided by the World Bank’s Financial Sector Advisory Center (FinSAC) and the European Commission. The overall objective of this course is to provide participants with a better understanding of macrofinancial linkages, to teach them how to assess risks to macrofinancial stability under current circumstances, and to get an overview of the stabilizing role of different adjustment policies. 

The course took place for the first time as a 1.5-week course. The extension of course duration allowed for the inclusion of several new lectures and workshops, reaching a total of 14 lectures and two workshops. They focused on recent macrofinancial developments in the region, tools for macrofinancial risk assessment, the role of different policies (fiscal, monetary, macroprudential and microprudential) in promoting macrofinancial stability, and lessons learned from past adjustment programs in Europe. In addition, a roleplay for simulating the negotiation of a macrofinancial adjustment program was successfully reintroduced as part of the group work. During these sessions, participants slipped into roles as country officials and representatives of international authorities and, in several rounds of negotiations, developed an adjustment program for selected countries in the region that are hypothetically exposed to macrofinancial stress.

The 27 participants came from central banks, ministries of finance and economy, and other governmental organizations from 16 different countries. They were highly motivated, and their contributions to workshops and the group work were excellent.   

The course was very well received, with very high overall satisfaction ratings by participants in the end-of-course evaluation. Participants praised the course for its practical relevance to their jobs, its broad coverage of macrofinancial interlinkages and policy areas, as well as its interactive delivery through group debates and workshops. The lectures were also praised for their clarity, usefulness, and balance of technical details and policy experience sharing. Participants also appreciated the opportunity to network with colleagues from other countries. As a result, there was a very high level of agreement among participants to recommend this course to their peers.

This course is expected to be delivered next year again.

Markus Eller, Senior Economist, JVI

Reiner Martin, Director - Head of Research, NBS

Julia Wörz, Head of CESEE Section, OeNB