About the Program
In order to advance economic development in emerging markets and to stimulate growth, a refocus on business climate or investment climate improvement is in order. Investment climate along with infrastructure serve as the foundation for private enterprise. A strong business climate is directly associated with national wealth. In this presentation, topics include connections between investment climate and income, what conditions are necessary for a strong investment climate, rating or measuring business climate, a case study comparing two like countries, whether the advent of state capitalism mitigates the need for investment climate improvement, and outlook and trends in investment climate improvement. The perspective presented will be oriented toward the investor rather than the policymaker or the economist. Reports from the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank will be discussed.
About the Speaker
Barry Kolodkin is a Senior Evaluation Manager at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) where he evaluates investment projects to ensure they are accountable to bank standards, and to provide learning to drive future investment strategy. Prior to EBRD, Barry was the Head of the United Nations Development Programme in Greece and served as the Regional Programme Manager for the Black Sea Trade and Investment Promotion Programme which facilitated more than thirty-five trade and investment transactions across twelve countries in the Black Sea region.
Before his full-time involvement with development institutions, Barry Kolodkin spent seven years in private sector and international development consulting. Highlights include serving as the special adviser to the Romanian Prime Minister for business environment and foreign investment issues, lead author of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's “Best-Practice Guide for a Positive Business and Investment Climate” which has been translated into five languages, advised the startup of InvestUkraine -- Ukraine’s first investment promotion agency, and the US foreign policy guide/blogger for About.com, a New York Times company at the time, with nearly 3000 page views daily.
Earlier in his career, Barry served in international management positions with Sylvan Learning Systems and Thomson Learning which most notably featured the closing of the $150 million deal to computerize the CPA exam. He started his career with GRC International (now AT&T) supporting the Program Analysis and Evaluation division of the Office of the Secretary of Defense after completing his Master of Arts in the Security Policy Studies Program at the Elliott School of International Affairs, The George Washington University. Barry Kolodkin has worked and lived in the United Kingdom, Greece, Romania, Ukraine and the United States. He currently resides with his family in London, UK.
