JVI Alumni Quotes

Attending the audit process and preparing recommendations for external public financial control in accordance with the law are the main duties of my job. We need to always upgrade our experiences, knowledge for implementation of reforms, key challenges, and the factors for success. Therefore, participating in the PFAR course was very effective for me and it allowed direct interaction with the top officials from the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance, the Parliamentary Budget Office (and the Public Administration Division) for well understanding the global gap, risk, and trends.  Furthermore, I consider that a well-designed course by JVI opens unique opportunities to exchange experiences, share knowledge and deeply contribute to participants for a comprehensive and practical understanding. Jahandar Gadirov, Department of Public Services Audit, The Chamber of Accounts/SAI Azerbaijan.

Crisis and resilience course entirely fulfilled my expectations regarding organization, topics, lecturers and discussions with participants. From the historical perspective to recent episodes, we had a comprehensive insights into types, costs and causes of variety of crises that humanity faced so far and lessons that were or were not learnt, especially in European regions and countries. Moreover, we were actively included in presentations and case studies which helped us to better understand practical implications of different policies, primarily monetary and fiscal, designed to respond to short-term and long-term consequences of crises in adequate, coordinated and sustainable manner. At the same time, it was great opportunity to meet colleagues from different countries and cultures and exchange professional and personal experiences on crises and other current socio-economic developments, which will probably have long-lasting impact on national and global economy. This extraordinary course provided me with broad-based academic and empirical views on fundamental and specific issues immanent to crises, with special focus on policy measures which can be implemented on macro and micro level, both before and during crisis. I would highly recommend this one-week course to central bankers and employees in ministries of economy and finance who are involved in analyses and researches related to crises and capacities to recover in their institutions and home countries. Stojan Janković, analyst, Economic Research and Statistics Department, National Bank of Serbia Crises and resilience course, November 14-18, 2022. 

From September 12, 2022 through September 16, 2022, I had the pleasure of attending the “Future of Taxation” course at the Joint Vienna Institute. The course was incredibly well-designed balancing lectures, country presentations and the multiple discussions to give the participants a comprehensive and practical understanding of the topics. Topics covered such as the Structure of Taxes in Emerging Market Economies enhanced my understanding of the fundamentals of tax systems across developing economies and challenges they face. In addition, through topics on Tax avoidance, Tax evasion, and Illicit financial flows I grasped the importance of having well-established tax laws and enforcement capacities, whereas the Panel Discussion on the impact of Digitalization on Taxation provided me with novel insights on the benefits and challenges pertaining tax systems and policies arising from digitalization. Overall, the course was very informative, practical, and encompassing and would highly recommend it. Lastly, I would like to express my gratitude to the Joint Vienna Institute for the opportunity to attend policy-oriented trainings. Through these effectively designed and tailored courses, I can professionally grow and develop, as the new knowledge and skills I acquire I directly apply at my workplace. Festa Kusari, Senior Fiscal Policy Analyst, Ministry of Finance, Labor, and Transfers, Government of Kosovo. Future of Taxation course, September 12-16, 2022.

The participation in the FDI course unequivocally contributed to our understanding of the complex factors affecting the global investment environment. To meet the needs of all participants with different professional backgrounds, the lectures were carefully tailored to cover a wide array of topics including political risk, FDI and economic growth, investment promotion, and reform policies in developing countries. Furthermore, the course featured speakers from public and private sectors as well as international organizations to provide an all-encompassing perspective pertaining to investment trends worldwide. More importantly, the training was an ideal combination of theory and practice. The class discussions and the workshop involving real-life scenarios were designed to encourage the participants to thoroughly analyze issues impacting good governance, economic prosperity, and political stability. Erik Khzmalyan, Manager of Investment Promotion and Foreign Relations, Enterprise Armenia. Course on Foreign Direct Investment Policies, September 5-9, 2022.

The growth of foreign direct investments leads to the welfare of individual countries, however, determining the right policy for FDI attraction remains a constant challenge. Training course organized by JVI - FDI policy was coherent and adapted to new challenges, led to a certain results. All stakeholders, including the policy makers and implementers were involved in the training. We also had a chance to meet real investors and learned from them about all major factors that has an influence on investment decisions, as well as on the process itself, which made the course even more attractive. Magda Bolotashvili, Deputy Director General, Georgian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Foreign Direct Investment Policies Course, September 5-9, 2022. 

The FDI policies course, held face-to-face at JVI premises in Vienna, exceeded my expectations! The course was very well-designed, lecture topics were carefully selected to suit participant needs and delivered by excellent lecturers from academia, public and private sectors. Within a short timeframe we were provided with a very thorough understanding of various aspects of FDI, with a specific emphasis on the Eastern Europe & Central Asia region. An added bonus were classroom discussions and experience sharing sessions with other participants! Giorgi Nakashidze, Head of Funds Supervision Division, Capital Markets Department, National Bank of Georgia. Foreign Direct Investment Policies Course, September 5-9, 2022.

All the topics presented and the workshops in the agenda are very relevant to my work. I appreciate the way all the important issues were referred to in the vast scope of NPLs’ regulation and the possible implications of their management on banks and their supervision, respectively.The lecturers showed superb experience and it was a pleasure to discuss with them and the other participants various practical matters arising from the interesting case studies that we had. The whole course is definitely very useful and deserves every effort on the virtual steps we made together at JVI. Maria Chankova, Chief Inspector Banking Supervision, Bulgarian National Bank. NPL Management and Resolution Course, July 11-15, 2022