IMF chief endorsed for second term

EU finance ministers have agreed to support a second term for the International Monetary Fund’s Kristalina Georgieva.

European Union finance ministers are backing Kristalina Georgieva for a second term as head of the International Monetary Fund, Belgian Finance Minister Vincent Van Peteghem said. Support was unanimous among EU member states, he told reporters in Brussels. 

The job in Washington was at one stage linked to Paschal Donohoe who, as head of the Eurogroup, had appeared to want the top post at a time when it was unclear whether Ms Georgieva wanted, or would be endorsed by Europe and the US for a second term. 

“Last Friday, Kristalina Georgieva expressed her willingness to actually serve for a second term at the helm at the IMF if she has enough support among the membership,” Mr Van Peteghem said. “Today, I’m very happy to announce that all European member states actually expressed that support.”

Ms Georgieva’s current five-year term ends in September. Tuesday’s decision already looked likely after the eurozone's two biggest economies — Germany and France — both expressed their support for the 70-year-old Bulgarian economist.

“I think that Kristalina showed strong leadership the last couple of years, especially during unprecedented crises, and that she also provided support to all the members,” Van Peteghem said. 

Mr Donohoe, touted as a potential rival for the top job at the IMF, said after a meeting of eurozone finance ministers that Ms Georgieva had steered the institution through the covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine in an “incredibly inclusive way”.

 The IMF’s managing director is formally appointed by the institution’s executive board, which consists of 24 people elected by its member countries. It is customary for the Europeans to choose the IMF chief, while the US can decide on who leads the World Bank. Both institutions are based in Washington.

 Bloomberg and Irish Examiner