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2022 New Zealand Economics Forum

Date Thursday 24 - Friday 25 February 2022
Where Online, virtual event
Admission Cost Free

Waikato Management School is proud to host the 2022 New Zealand Economics Forum, 'Dealing with Covid's long tail', being held virtually on 24 & 25 February.

The forum will bring together an outstanding lineup of top economists, business and social leaders, and public sector officials.

They will share their expert perspectives on how we can address some of the major challenges and opportunities facing our country today as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 global pandemic.

2022 New Zealand Economics Forum

24 & 25 February - hosted online by Waikato Management School #nzef2022

The new 2023 New Zealand Economics Forum page is now live!

This includes all the details on the 2023 speaker line-up and a detailed programme for the two-day event on 2 & 3 March.

Learn more

Videos of speakers at 2022 NZEF

Watch video replays of all the speakers from the 2022 New Zealand Economics Forum here.


Video replays

Watch Day One Replay - Thursday, 24th February

Watch Day Two Replay - Friday, 25th February

Event schedule

Please click on the arrows below to open or close the schedule for each day.

(Note: Schedule is subject to change)


To receive video highlights of this year’s forum, and information on the 2023 New Zealand Economics Forum, please complete your details here.

Speaker bios

Please click on the arrows below to open or close the speaker bios.

Keynote speakers

Rt Hon Helen Clark

Former Prime Minister of New Zealand

The Rt. Hon. Helen Clark was elected as Prime Minister of New Zealand for three successive terms from 1999 to 2008.

A respected global leader, Helen Clark continues to be a strong voice on sustainable development, climate action, gender equality, women's leadership, global health issues, and international co-operation.

In 2009, she became the first woman to lead the United Nations Development Programme, serving two terms as Administrator until 2017. She was also Chair of the United Nations Development Group, a committee consisting of all UN funds, programmes, agencies, and departments working on development issues.

In 2020, she was appointed by the Director-General of the World Health Organisation as Co-Chair of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, which reported in May 2021.

Throughout her parliamentary career over 27 years, Helen Clark engaged widely in policy development and advocacy across the international, economic, social, environmental, and cultural spheres.

Jim Bolger

Rt Hon Jim Bolger

Former Prime Minister of New Zealand

The Rt. Hon. Jim Bolger was Prime Minister of New Zealand from October 1990 to December 1997.

He held key ministerial portfolios for 16 years and had three consecutive terms as the country’s head of Government. Under his leadership the New Zealand economy was transformed from having one of the lowest growth rates among OECD countries to one of the strongest.

After retiring from politics in 1998, Mr Bolger was New Zealand’s Ambassador to Washington from 1998-2002.

He has chaired a number of companies, including Trustees Executors, NZ Post, Kiwibank and KiwiRail, and was Patron of the New Zealander of the Year Awards. He was Chancellor of the University of Waikato from 2007-2019.

Mr Bolger is a member of the Order of New Zealand (ONZ), New Zealand’s highest honour.

Dr Caralee McLiesh

Chief Executive and Secretary, New Zealand Treasury

Dr Caralee McLiesh joined the New Zealand Treasury as Chief Executive and Secretary in September 2019.

Previously she was Managing Director at Technical and Further Education (TAFE) New South Wales, Australia, where she led the organisation's transformation to become a more modern, competitive and sustainable organisation.

From 2008-2018 Caralee held several Deputy Secretary roles at the NSW Treasury. She led the development of state budgets and advised the Treasurer on fiscal and economic policy, including taxation, intergovernmental relations, and balance sheet management.

Caralee has also worked at the World Bank in Washington DC, the International Red Cross, and the Boston Consulting Group.

Adrian Orr

Governor, Reserve Bank of New Zealand

Adrian Orr was appointed Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand - Te Pūtea Matua in March 2018.

Previously, Adrian was Chief Executive Officer at the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, and prior to that he was Deputy Governor and Head of Financial Stability for the Reserve Bank.

Adrian has also held the positions of Chief Economist at Westpac Banking Corporation, Chief Manager of the Economics Department at the Reserve Bank and Chief Economist at The National Bank of New Zealand. He has also worked at the New Zealand Treasury; and the OECD, based in Paris.

Adrian graduated from the University of Waikato in 1983 with a Bachelor of Social Sciences, majoring in Economics and Geography. He also has a Master of Development Economics from the University of Leicester, England, graduating with distinction in 1985.

About Waikato Management School

As New Zealand's leading business school, Waikato Management School is proud to be ranked #1 in New Zealand for Business & Economics (2022 Times Higher Education World University Rankings), having been at the forefront of economics research for more than a decade.

We are also ranked #1 for economics research quality in the government's Performance-Based Research Fund 2021, with the highest average score and the most citations per academic.

Waikato Management School is positioned in the top 1% of business schools globally, with our prestigious Triple Crown accreditation (EQUIS, AMBA, and AACSB); an international benchmark of excellence in business education that we have held since 2005.

Learn more about our world-leading economists here.

50th anniversary of WMS

This year marks Waikato Management School's 50th anniversary since it was founded at the University of Waikato in 1972.

That same year we introduced New Zealand's first four-year business degree, the Bachelor of Management Studies, in line with North American benchmarks of business education excellence. That put Waikato on the fast track to being a trailblazer in tertiary education.

A lot has changed in 50 years, but we continue to make an impact through the school's founding principles - a strong emphasis on experiential learning, close links with industry, and research-led teaching that informs best business practice.

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