01-29-2025
Distinguished Fellow of International Finance David Malpass sat down with five Daniels School of Business students during his recent visit to Purdue's West Lafayette campus, giving students the opportunity to understand the intersection of business and public policy and its overall impact on the economy. The informal nature of the talk allowed for a wide-ranging discussion, with Malpass providing detailed examples and anecdotes from his professional experience to illustrate key points.
With a wide variety of business backgrounds, Sam Wadlington, Olivia Reynolds, Riley Garrison, Jonathan Putman and Austin Watson asked questions on the impact of global conflicts on trade and supply chains, agricultural and food security issues, China's influence in Africa and U.S. strategies in the region, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war and potential paths, economic policies in countries like Chile and Argentina, and global health and pandemic preparedness.
Because Reynolds has both an agriculture and business education, she asked the former World Bank president how the Ukraine-Russia War is impacting agriculture and food supply chains. Malpass explained how the Russian blockade forced Ukraine to export via the Danube River. He also spoke about the impact of fertilizer distribution and access in developing African nations, where food security and agricultural productivity lack resiliency, especially in developing countries. Malpass spoke about issues with fertilizer distribution and how crucial it is for the fertilizer to be appropriate for the local ecosystem. He also spoke to grain aid, which can disrupt local markets and private sector development in agriculture.
“It was interesting to learn David’s perspective on the widening gap between low and middle-income countries. Small fluctuations in global product supply and demand contribute to food security and can lead to the inability to produce enough nutrients to sustain the population in developing countries,” Reynolds said.
Malpass expanded on his observations about economic development on the African continent, criticizing non-transparent contracts between China and developing countries and arguing they can lead to corruption. He advocated for more transparent international agreements and contracts to promote better governance and development outcomes.
Garrison, who is heading to Lilly Co. after graduation, asked about health and the cost of medications in the U.S. and worldwide. Malpass discussed the importance of global health surveillance systems and the challenges in funding and implementing them effectively. He suggested that pharmaceutical companies could play a significant role in improving global health preparedness.
Wadlington learned that “It is to the U.S.'s benefit to have healthy people around the world. The U.S. should work with major pharmaceutical companies to identify and create five to 10 programs that they can fund to reduce the threat of global disease.”
Wadlington, Watson and Putman inquired about trade, inflation and economic health. They were curious about long-term lessons from the Chicago Boys' economic policies in 1980s Chile. Initially successful, their efforts led to significant growth and trade liberalization.
Chile's approach of lowering the highest tariffs first, rather than focusing on average tariffs, was particularly effective in reducing economic distortions, Malpass noted. However, Chile's open immigration policy eventually led to political instability as it attracted large numbers of low-wage workers.
“Through our discussion, I learned that inflation rates are not a one-size-fits-all for all countries,” said Reynolds, reflecting upon Malpass’ explanation that 2% inflation targets don’t work in Brazil, which is working to bring up the income of its very low-paid workers.
Malpass emphasized the concept of "peace through strength" as a viable approach to ending conflicts like the Russia-Ukraine war. He suggested that a strong U.S. stance could lead to negotiations and potentially end the conflict.
“High-level conversations with area experts offer invaluable opportunities to gain fresh perspectives on current economic and business topics. These discussions are not lectures; they’re dynamic exchanges where everyone actively participates, sharing ideas and challenging one another. What makes these talks especially impactful is the chance to ask tough, controversial questions to individuals with firsthand experience,” said Garrison.
The Economic and Business Insights for Tomorrow (EBIT) series allows students to practice interacting with leadership and executives. "We're trying to build skills in sort of interacting with leadership, interacting with executives, and presenting concise questions and answers,” said Wadlington.
During his two-day visit, Malpass also participated in a fireside chat hosted by Purdue's Center for C-SPAN Scholarship & Engagement, guest lectured in ECON 280-Money and Banking, met with faculty, and spoke at a Purdue Economics Association event.
