The maintenance at the head of the IMF of Kristalina Georgieva, accused of irregularities, remained in suspense on Monday, casting a shadow over the institution’s autumn meetings which are being held this week. The Board of Directors of the International Monetary Fund, which believes it has made “significant progress” in understanding this issue, could meet again Monday, according to two sources familiar with the matter, after a series of meetings last week. But he still has not reached a consensus.
Even if the IMF management were to renew its confidence in her, the managing director, a 68-year-old Bulgarian, would emerge weakened from this affair which erupted with the publication, on September 16, of the conclusions of an investigation by the cabinet of ‘WilmerHale lawyers. This investigation revealed irregularities in the drafting of the 2018 and 2020 editions of the World Bank’s “Doing Business” report. And its authors accused Kristalina Georgieva of putting pressure on her teams when she was managing director of the World Bank so that China obtained a more favorable ranking.
An honorable record in favor of vulnerable countries
The lack of decision throws a cold on the meetings of the Fund and the World Bank which start on Monday. On the one hand, Europe and Africa want it to be maintained. On the other hand, the United States and Japan are for the time being reluctant to see her continue her functions, according to several sources familiar with the matter. US Treasury spokeswoman Alexandra LaManna explained this week that the United States’ “responsibility” is “to preserve the integrity of international financial institutions” which provide benchmark economic data.
The Bulgarian nonetheless enjoys strong support. Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, estimated in the Financial Times that his dismissal “would be a dangerous and costly capitulation to anti-Beijing hysteria”, an allusion to the fact that Washington accuses China interference in international institutions. Her supporters also highlight her record during the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the leader having worked to help the most vulnerable countries.