Tucson Mayor Regina Romero in Qatar for economic forum

Tucson Mayor Regina Romero is one of five U.S. mayors who are in Qatar this week for an economic forum.

The Qatar Economic Forum, hosted by Bloomberg, is set to feature more than 120 speakers and over 1,500 delegates from across the world.

Romero did not announce the international trip in advance of her departure. Her staff says Romero plans to discuss details upon her return.

Romero left Friday and will be back “stateside” on Thursday, said Victor Mercado, a spokesman for the mayor. She will be returning to work next week, he said.

On Wednesday, Romero's office clarified that the Qatari Embassy paid for her trip.

Originally, city spokesman Andy Squire told the Star on Tuesday that Romero's trip was funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies. But spokespeople from Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg Media denied Wednesday that either entity funded Romero's trip.  

Squire said the cost to city taxpayers is minimal. Romero is receiving a per diem of nearly $70 per day, according to U.S. General Services Administration per diem rates, Squire said.

Originally Mercado and Squire both said Tuesday morning that Romero was expected to return to Tucson next week.

Romero will be missing Tuesday’s city council meeting due to the trip, said Victor Mercado, her spokesman. The council is expected adopt a tentative fiscal year budget Tuesday night. Final budget adoption for the city is expected on June 3.

Mercado said Romero also will miss Thursday’s Pima Association of Governments-Regional Transportation Authority joint meeting. The boards are expected to consider a process to appoint a new lawyer, according to its agenda. Romero serves as chair of the PAG Regional Council and is the city’s representative on the RTA Board.

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The Qatar Economic Forum in Doha, the nation’s capital, started Tuesday and lasts through Thursday. It’s the fifth year in a row the forum has been held.

The forum’s theme is “The Road to 2030: Transforming the Global Economy,” according to its website, and it “will explore how strategic decisions made in the region will impact the global economy further.”

“We are witnessing a profound shift in global money flows as the Gulf evolves from a dominant energy supplier into a financial powerhouse,” the forum says. “Amid President Trump’s consequential policy changes and the looming risks of a global trade war, regulatory uncertainty, and shifting geopolitical alliances, the forum will examine how global businesses are tapping into the region’s economic trajectory against the backdrop of an unpredictable U.S. administration.”

Speakers across the three day event include business and government leaders from across the world, including Michael Bloomberg, Yanis Varoufakis, the former Finance Minister of Greece, Mark Attanasio, co-founder of Crescent Capital and owner of the Milwaukee Brewers, Mary Callahan Erdoes, CEO of J.P. Morgan’s Asset & Wealth Management, Donald Trump, Jr., and Steve Mnuchin, former U.S. Treasury Secretary in the first Trump Administration.

One of Tuesday’s events featured a virtual interview with Elon Musk that was moderated by Mishal Husain, Editor-at-Large of Bloomberg Weekend, according to the forum program.

Musk said he was committed to still being CEO of Tesla in five years’ time, the Associated Press reported. And when asked about his involvement in politics, Musk said he “did what needed to be done.”

When asked about his political donations, Musk said that he would “do a lot less in the future.”

“I think I’ve done enough,” he said, the AP reported.

Bloomberg invited five mayors from across the country to go to this economic development conference, said Squire, the city’s spokesman.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas is also attending, the Kansas City Star reported. Kansas City is one of the 2026 World Cup host cities.