DUSHANBE, October 29, 2015, Asia-Plus -- Mr. Hans Timmer, Chief Economist, Europe and Central Asia, World Bank, arrived in Dushanbe on a four-day visit on October 27.

According to the World Bank (WB) Dushanbe Office, the main purpose of the visit is for him to present the World Bank Europe and Central Asia Economic Outlook Report (October 2015) “Low Commodity Prices and Weak Currencies.”

The report will be presented today afternoon at Dushanbe Sheraton Hotel.

The report reviews the economic developments and presents the outlook for GDP growth in Europe and Central Asia (ECA), noting the fragility of recovery in Western Europe and the difficult adjustments in ECA.  It also provides an analysis of the oil prices and real exchange rates, and highlights the need for adjustment to the “new normal” while ensuring availability of efficient targeted social safety nets, and encouraging the opportunities for diversification.

Mr. Timmer is a quantitative international macroeconomist and econometrician with 15 years of management experience leading teams of modelers, forecasters, and policy analysts.  His experience ranges from long-term structural analyses of the economic impact of environmental policies, trade policies and tax reforms, to short-term monitoring of the business cycle and analysis of monetary and fiscal policies.  Before joining the Bank in 1996, he was Manager of International Economic Analysis, among other positions, at the Central Planning Bureau of The Netherlands.  He holds a Masters degree in econometrics from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam and has also studied at the University of Lodz in Poland.