On 13 August 2026, UNU will host “Beyond GDP: Creating Quality Growth and Opportunities for Youth in Developing Economies”, a conversation with Professor Bambang Brodjonegoro, Dean and CEO of the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), and Professor Aya Suzuki, Senior Vice-Rector of the United Nations University and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations. This event will start at 18:30 in the 2F Reception Hall at UNU Headquarters in Tokyo.
Young people in developing economies are entering labour markets shaped by rapid technological change, climate pressures, demographic shifts and persistent inequality. Although many countries have achieved significant GDP growth, youth continue to face insecure work, unequal access to education and skills, and limited opportunities to participate in economic and public life. These challenges raise an important question: how should economic progress be measured when growth does not create meaningful opportunities for the next generation?
For this special Conversation Series event marking UNU Youth Month, Professor Bambang Brodjonegoro and Professor Aya Suzuki will join UNU Junior Fellow Alland Dharmawan for a conversation on how developing economies can move beyond GDP and create more inclusive, resilient and sustainable pathways for the next generation. The discussion will explore questions such as: What does “quality growth” mean for young people? How can developing economies create productive employment, strengthen education and skills, and enable young people to benefit from innovation and economic transformation? And what policies and institutions are needed to ensure that youth, including those in rural and marginalized communities, are not left behind?
The UNU Conversation Series aims to foster audience participation; you are encouraged to engage with the speakers during the conversation and at the reception that will follow, where all event attendees are invited to enjoy hors d’oeuvres and drinks while exchanging ideas and making new contacts. Young people will be especially encouraged to actively contribute throughout this session.
Please note that this event will be in English. Advance registration (by 12 August at 15:00) is required. Please click on the REGISTER button above to access the online registration page. Please be prepared to present identification at check-in.
Please note that food and photography are prohibited during events at UNU Headquarters, unless prior permission is granted by UNU.
About the speakers
Professor Bambang Brodjonegoro is Dean and CEO of the Asian Development Bank Institute. Before joining ADBI in April 2025, he served as Special Advisor to the President of the Republic of Indonesia for Economic Affairs and National Development. He previously held several senior leadership positions in the Government of Indonesia, serving as Minister of Finance from 2014 to 2016, Minister of National Development Planning from 2016 to 2019, and Minister of Research and Technology from 2019 to 2021. He also served as Director General of the Islamic Research and Training Institute at the Islamic Development Bank from 2009 to 2010.
Professor Brodjonegoro holds master’s and doctoral degrees in urban and regional planning from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Faculty of Economics and Business at the University of Indonesia. He was a full professor at the University of Indonesia and served as Dean of its Faculty of Economics from 2005 to 2009. His areas of expertise include fiscal policy and economic development, the middle income trap, innovation, digital transformation, public-private partnerships, urban and regional development, energy, governance and regional economic cooperation.
Professor Aya Suzuki is Senior Vice-Rector of the United Nations University and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations (since October 2025). She also serves as a professor at the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Frontier Sciences. She is a distinguished development economist whose research examines how developing countries can contribute to reducing poverty, with a particular focus on agricultural and industrial development. Her work explores how employment creation, agricultural transformation, and industrial development can improve livelihoods and support broader economic progress.
She has conducted empirical research using micro-level data and applied econometric methods, including field research on agricultural production, agricultural markets and rural development in countries across Africa and Asia. Professor Suzuki holds a PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of California, Davis.
