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International Monetary Fund Managing Director election 2011 The selection process for the new Managing Director of the IMF in 2011 presents characteristics that have never been seen. The balance of power that held the unwritten rule that assigned the leading position of the IMF to a European seems to be changing as the developing nations acquire more weight. In particular the BRIC nations, together with South Africa and Mexico, have expressed their strong opposition to assign the Managing Director position based on geographical characteristics as opposed to a merit based approach.
Candidates
[edit]The first two openly announced formal candidates were Agustin Carstens, Mexico´s Central Bank Governor, and Christine Lagarde, France´s Minister of Finance. The statements and resumes of the candidates present their personal backgrounds and their perspectives on the role of the IMF.
Lagarde, Christine [1] | Carstens, Agustin [2] | |
---|---|---|
Nationality | French | Mexican |
profession | Lawyer | Economist |
Education | Bachelor of Arts ITAM PhD - University of Chicago | |
Specialization | Labor, Anti-trust and Mergers Acquisitions (Law) | International economics and finance, and economic development |
Career | 25 years in private practice Baker McKenzie: Associate in 1981. Member of the Executive Committee in 1995. Chairman of the Global Executive Committee in 1999. Chairman of the Global Strategic Committee in 2004. 6 Years French Public Sector: 2 years Foreign Trade Ministry and Minister for Agriculture 2005-2007 Minister. From mid 2005 to mid 2007. 4 years Ministry for Economy, Finance and Employment. Minister. From mid 2007 to date. Under this position, I have been in charge of France's economic policy and have held the position of Governor for France for the IMF, the World Bank, the regional development banks and the Global Environment Facility. Before co-chairing the G20 and G7 Finance Meetings in 2011, I was chair of the EU's Economic and Financial Affairs Council in the second half of 2008. |
Over 30 years of public service: 19 years Mexico’s Central Bank 1980-1999 Foreign exchange trader Treasurer, Chief of staff to the Governor Head of the Economic Research Department (Chief economist). 2 years International Monetary Fund 1999-2000 Executive Director at the Fund, representing Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Spain. From mid-1999 to late 2000. 3 years Mexico’s Ministry of Finance 2000-2003 Undersecretary. From late 2000 to 2003. Responsible for macroeconomic planning, financial sector regulation and supervision, coordination and oversight of our development banks, Mexico´s relationship with international financial institutions, and debt management. 3 years International Monetary Fund 2003-2006 Deputy Managing Director (DMD). This provided me with the opportunity to work closely with two distinguished European Managing Directors: Horst Köhler and Rodrigo de Rato. In my purview as DMD, among other issues, I had the responsibility of managing the Fund´s relationship with over 70 countries. These included countries from Europe (among them, Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal, and Belgium); North Africa and the Middle East (including Tunisia, Morocco, and Lebanon); Africa (Mali, Senegal, Tanzania, Burundi, and others); Asia (including Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Pakistan); Latin America (from Uruguay and the Dominican Republic to most of the Caribbean nations); and several other countries as varied as Armenia and Australia. 3 years Mexico’s Ministry of Finance 2006-2009 Minister of Finance. I was responsible for tax policy, tax administration, customs, expenditure and debt management, and financial sector regulation and supervision. |
Economic Policy Record | As chair of the EU's Economic and Financial Affairs Council in the second half of 2008 I significantly contributed to urgent crisis resolution mechanisms. During the economic and financial crisis, I took a twofold course of action at national level. In terms of crisis management, I led efforts by the French authorities to shield the French economy from the impact of the banking crisis. Early on, France decided to provide support for its banks in order to avoid a credit crunch and its recessionary impact. In addition, I worked to pave the way for sustainable growth in the aftermath of the crisis. My two priorities were fiscal consolidation and competitiveness. Fiscal consolidation, including a comprehensive pension overhaul, was important because the crisis had weighed heavily on the country's public finances. My second priority was to prepare France's future growth drivers. We decided to invest heavily not only in research and development -- by means of a powerful tax incentive to develop facilities in France -- but also in the industries of the future. Concurrently, I worked to improve regulation of the intemational financial system, in order to eliminate the excesses of a system that unregulated market forces had brought to the brink of collapse. The G20 can take credit for the first-ever initiative to improve regulation of OTC markets, and a historic increase in bank capital under the Basel standards. On the domestic front, in an effort to learn from the crisis, I decided on an ambitious reform of the French supervisory system for banks and insurance companies. |
When I started as an economist in 1980 Mexico was experiencing severe economic problems: very high inflation, disorderly public finances, monetary policy dominated by fiscal considerations, an unsustainable fixed exchange rate, a weak balance of payments, excessive public debt, and a poorly supervised and regulated financial system. Even though Mexico continues to confront challenges in terms of economic and human development, poverty alleviation and income distribution, today the country is enjoying rapid economic growth, low and controlled inflation, no balance of payments problems, record levels of
international reserves, near balanced public finances, a debt to GDP ratio of approximately 35 percent, and a solid banking system which to a large extent is already Basel III compliant. This structural transformation required a major overhaul in the economic policymaking in my country. Since early on in my career I have had the opportunity to participate in the policymaking relevant to this transformation, with more of a direct and substantial contribution as my responsibilities have increased. Among the most significant policy transformations in Mexico that I have participated in, I would like to highlight the following: |
Perspectives for the Fund | Over the past few years, the Fund has definitely changed for the better, successfully repositioning itself at the centre of the global economic and financial system. It learnt a great deal from the recent financial crisis, including openness to new ideas, while remaining loyal to its core values and principles. In recognition of this, the international community has entrusted the Fund with a pivotal role with respect to global economic and financial cooperation. Under Dominique Strauss--Kahn's leadership, the lMF's resources, tools and govemance have all been strengthened and the stigma often attached to Fund financing has been reduced. |
The global financial crisis has vividly demonstrated how interconnected our world has become in the 21st century. While globalization has lead to unprecedented growth for many countries, be they advanced, emerging, or low income, the crisis reminded us that in an interconnected world maintaining stability and avoiding and resolving crisis is a collective responsibility. |
Managerial skills | My responsibilities in the Central Bank, Ministry of Finance, and the IMF have allowed me to acquire the skills to manage very complex institutions, including one with multinational and diverse staff, and with international operations, such as the Fund. I have worked closely with the Fund´s staff and I know they are its most important asset. | |
Diplomatic skills and appreciation for multilateral cooperation |
Very early in my career I recognized the importance of diplomacy. Mexico has traditionally been an active participant in multilateral affairs (indeed, Mexico is a proud founding member of the Fund, having participated in the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference). I acquired diplomatic skills on the job in my country, which were further shaped and enhanced during the time I served in the Fund as Executive Director (ED) and as DMD. In fact, in my purview as DMD, I was responsible for managing the IMF´s relationship with other international financial institutions (excluding the World Bank), and the United Nations system, which gave me both experience and profound appreciation for effective coordination among multilateral organizations. |