The interplay of geopolitical forces and domestic governance highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of the factors driving global prosperity and economic development. Rigorous empirical analysis and interdisciplinary insights are needed to establish that understanding so that scholars and policymakers can craft informed strategies to address the challenges of the twenty-first century.

Presented by the Freedom and Prosperity Center, the Global Prosperity Forum showcases successful case studies, emerging economic research, and insights from global policy experts. The forum also explores the essential building blocks for durable, long-term progress.

The 2025 Global Prosperity Forum took place on March 19 at Atlantic Council global headquarters in Washington, DC.

This event not only yields insights that bear significant impacts for research and policy but also allows participants to engage directly with influential stakeholders shaping the future of international development. Focused on developing countries, the forum reinforces the Freedom and Prosperity Center’s mission to uplift the world’s poorest and most marginalized communities.

featured discussions

To launch the inaugural Global Prosperity Forum, Atlantic Council President and CEO Fred Kempe delivered opening remarks and outlined the important missions of both the Atlantic Council and the Freedom and Prosperity Center.
As global uncertainty persists, Amanda Glassman, Michael J. Nyenhuis, Andrew Wilson, and Damon Wilson spoke with Atlantic Council President and CEO Fred Kempe about the importance of democracy promotion for advancing global prosperity in the year ahead.
Freedom and Prosperity Senior Director Joseph Lemoine provided an overview of the Freedom and Prosperity Indexes, highlighted the undeniable link between freedom and prosperity, and reinforced the importance of driving international development by safeguarding political freedom, economic freedom, and the rule of law.
After a pivotal year of elections across the world in 2024, Johanna Kao, Mushfiq Mobarak, and Enrique Roig spoke with Patrick Quirk about the contemporary challenges to global democracy and policy opportunities that lie ahead for the Trump administration.
In this critically relevant discussion, Nicole Goldin, Ann Hudock, and Sophie Sirtaine spoke with Kate Warren about the opportunity to enhance global development strategies by prioritizing the social, economic, and political empowerment of women.
As Latin American countries deal with the effects of regional turbulence and economic uncertainty, Sary Levy-Carciente, Lilliana Rojas-Suarez, and Vanessa Rubio-Marquez spoke with Jason Marczak about the future of democracy and development in the region.
As religious tensions persist around the world, Scott Appleby, Mohamed Elsanousi, Katherine Marshall, and Fabio Petito spoke with Jack Jenkins about the importance of driving sustainable development by promoting religious freedom and encouraging interreligious collaboration.

Photos

Agenda: Plenary Sessions

Welcoming remarks | 9:30 – 9:35 a.m. 

FEATURING

Fred Kempe, President and CEO, Atlantic Council

POSTPONED—Fireside chat: The future of US foreign aid and global development

FEATURING

Peter Marocco, Director of the Office of Foreign Assistance and Deputy Administrator-Designate at the US Agency for International Development, US Department of State

 

MODERATOR

Fred Kempe, President and CEO, Atlantic Council

Leadership conversation: The 2025 agenda for advancing global prosperity | 9:35 – 11:00 a.m. 

FEATURING

Amanda Glassman, Executive Advisor to the President, Inter-American Development Bank

Michael J. Nyenhuis, President and CEO, UNICEF USA

Damon Wilson, President and CEO, National Endowment for Democracy

Andrew Wilson, Executive Director, Center for International Private Enterprise

 

MODERATOR

Fred Kempe, President and CEO, Atlantic Council

The state of freedom and prosperity around the world | 11:00 – 11:10 a.m.

FEATURING

Joseph Lemoine, Senior Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Key democracy challenges globally for the Trump administration | 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. 

FEATURING

Frances Brown, Vice President for Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; Former Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for African Affairs, White House National Security Council

Johanna Kao, Senior Director for Asia, International Republican Institute; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Global China Hub, Atlantic Council

Enrique Roig, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, US Department of State

 

MODERATOR

Patrick Quirk, Vice President for Strategy, Innovation, and Impact, International Republican Institute; Nonresident Senior Fellow for Freedom and Democracy, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Advancing global development by empowering women | 1:40 – 2:40 p.m.

FEATURING

Nicole Goldin, Head of Equitable Development, United Nations University Centre for Policy Research; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council

Ann Hudock, President and CEO, Counterpart International

Sophie Sirtaine, CEO, Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP)

 

MODERATOR

Kate Warren, Executive Vice President and Executive Editor, Devex

Uncertainty and upheaval: The future of democracy and development in Latin America | 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

FEATURING

Sary Levy-Carciente, Research Scientist, Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom, Florida International University

Liliana Rojas-Suarez, Director, Latin America Initiative, Center for Global Development

Vanessa Rubio-Márquez, Associate Dean for Extended Education, School of Public Policy, London School of Economics; Advisory Council Member, Freedom and Prosperity Center

 

MODERATOR

Jason Marczak, Vice President and Senior Director, Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, Atlantic Council

Changing the conversation about religious freedom: An integral human development approach | 4:10 – 5:10 p.m.

FEATURING

Scott Appleby, Founding Dean and Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Global Affairs, Keough School of Global Affairs; Research Fellow, Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion, University of Notre Dame

Mohamed Elsanousi, Commissioner, US Commission on International Religious Freedom

Katherine Marshall, Executive Director, World Faiths Development League, Georgetown University

Fabio Petito, Professor of Religion and International Relations, University of Sussex

 

MODERATOR

Jack Jenkins, National Reporter, Religion News Service

Agenda: Afternoon Research Workshops

Discussing development trends in Bangladesh and the South Asia region | 1:40 – 2:10 p.m. 

FEATURING

Mushfiq Mobarak, Jerome Kasoff ’54 Professor of Management and Economics, Yale University

 

MODERATOR

Julio Amador Diaz Lopez, Co-Founder, SiftyML; Senior Advisor, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

The link between freedom and borrower discouragement | 2:10 – 2:40 p.m.

FEATURING

Jérémie Bertrand, Professor and Deputy Academic Director of the Grande École Program, IÉSEG School of Management; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Caroline Perrin, Postdoctoral Researcher, RE-WIRING Project; Nonresident Fellow, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

 

MODERATOR

Joseph Lemoine, Senior Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Women, Business, and the Law | 3:00 – 3:30 p.m.

FEATURING

Tea Trumbic, Manager, Women, Business, and the Law, World Bank

 

MODERATOR

Nina Dannaoui-Johnson, Deputy Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Past, present, and future for freedom and prosperity | 3:30 – 4:00 p.m.

FEATURING

Ignacio Campomanes, Resident Fellow, Center for International Development, University of Navarra; Senior Advisor, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

 

MODERATOR

Nina Dannaoui-Johnson, Deputy Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Attracting foreign direct investment: The role of economic, legal, and political freedom | 4:10 – 4:40 p.m.

FEATURING

Jérémie Bertrand, Professor and Deputy Academic Director of the Grande École Program, IÉSEG School of Management; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Caroline Perrin, Postdoctoral Researcher, RE-WIRING Project; Nonresident Fellow, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

 

MODERATOR

Nina Dannaoui-Johnson, Deputy Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Exploring the connection between national prosperity and individual well-being | 4:40 – 5:10 p.m.

FEATURING

Nicoleta Acatrinei, Senior Lead Scientist, Center Walras-Pareto, University of Lausanne; Research Associate Fellow, Princeton University

Paul Radich, Assistant Professor, Busch School of Business, Catholic University of America

 

MODERATOR

Nina Dannaoui-Johnson, Deputy Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center, Atlantic Council

Featured speakers

2025 Atlas

2025 Atlas: Freedom and Prosperity Around the World

Twenty leading economists, scholars, and diplomats analyze the state of freedom and prosperity in eighteen countries around the world, looking back not only on a consequential year but across twenty-nine years of data on markets, rights, and the rule of law.

Read the Book

Highlights from last year

Online Event Tue, February 27, 2024 • 9:30 am ET

2024 Annual Research Conference

Scholars and policymakers from around the world present their research and analysis on international development and the relationship between freedom and prosperity. 
Freedom and Prosperity

Explore the data

Trackers and Data Visualizations

Jun 15, 2023

Freedom and Prosperity Indexes

The indexes rank 164 countries around the world according to their levels of freedom and prosperity. Use our site to explore twenty-eight years of data, compare countries and regions, and examine the sub-indexes and indicators that comprise our indexes.

More about the center

The Freedom and Prosperity Center aims to increase the prosperity of the poor and marginalized in developing countries and to explore the nature of the relationship between freedom and prosperity in both developing and developed nations.

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