On Thursday,  International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned that as the world economy has globalized, it has led to unfair distributions of wealth between nations and peoples.

Speaking at the Boao Forum in Hainan, China, Georgieva said nations need to work together so that international trade is stimulated in an equitable way which would allow  more people to benefit from globalization. She also pointed out that the world needed to work to ensure global supply chains become more secure and diverse.

She said, “We must recognize that the benefits of globalization are not shared fairly between countries and people.”

The IMF chief went on to cite research showing that trade-fragmentation can have a long-term cost that can run as high as 7% of global gross domestic product, and that the most adversely affected nations would be Asian.

She said that countries in relatively stronger positions should seek to help more vulnerable nations, especially those laboring under the stress of excessive national debt, noting that given current conditions, such as rising interest rates and depreciating currencies, such assistance is particularly important.

Georgieva said, “We urgently need faster and more efficient global mechanisms for providing debt treatments to these countries,” adding those mechanisms would be beneficial to both debtors and creditors.

Established in 2001 to improve cooperation between Asian countries and strengthen their economic ties with other regions of the world, the Boao economic forum is sometimes called “East Davos.”  It allows government and finance officials, entrepreneurs, experts, and scientists on economic, social, and other important issues to engage in dialogue over world events and pressing issues.

The event, which began on Tuesday in Hainan, will continue through March 31st.