France's Le Maire says Georgieva 'the right person' for IMF top job

Keeping Georgieva on for a second term would answer longstanding concerns raised by emerging market and developing countries over the U.S.-European duopoly at the two global financial institutions, the IMF and World Bank. A self-described "eternal optimist," Georgieva has weathered huge shocks to the global economy ranging from the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic just months after she took office to the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Wednesday praised Kristalina Georgieva for the "great job" she has been doing as managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and said he would support her for a second term. Le Maire told reporters on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Sao Paulo that it made sense to keep Georgieva in the top job at the global lender.

Georgieva's five-year term ends on Sept. 30. Under a longstanding agreement, European countries traditionally nominate a candidate to lead the IMF, while the U.S. nominates a candidate to head the World Bank. Both jobs are ultimately decided by the institutions' board of directors.

"I just want to emphasize that Kristalina Georgieva is doing a great job as managing director of the IMF and when you have someone doing a great job, it's always better to keep the same person at the same post," he said. "My belief is that Kristalina Georgieva is the right person at the right post at the right time."

France's support for a second term is significant, but Europe's pick for the job must be agreed by all European Union members. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner told Reuters Germany had not yet decided about a second term for Georgieva, but said he would meet with the IMF chief on Thursday.

"During the crisis, she was a strong leader who played an important role in ensuring that we have funds to support Ukraine, and to deal with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. We have to give her credit for that," Lindner said. Asked if she had been in discussions about a second term, Georgieva told Reuters on Tuesday that she was focused on the work at hand at the helm of the IMF, adding "I have always been of the view that you do the job you have - not some hypothetical in the future."

Georgieva, a gregarious economist from Bulgaria, is the second woman to head the IMF and the first person from an emerging market economy. Keeping Georgieva on for a second term would answer longstanding concerns raised by emerging market and developing countries over the U.S.-European duopoly at the two global financial institutions, the IMF and World Bank.

A self-described "eternal optimist," Georgieva has weathered huge shocks to the global economy ranging from the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic just months after she took office to the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. She is focused on bolstering prospects for medium-term growth which is lagging historical levels, managing the ongoing sovereign debt challenges and guiding the IMF through a complicated quota revamp.

Georgieva drew criticism inside and outside the Fund early on for her push to include climate change as a factor in surveillance reports on member countries' economies and her great interest in emerging market and developing economies. She's been instrumental in securing large loans for Ukraine, helping to catalyze additional funds to help its economy weather the strains of the two-year war against Russia's invasion, overseen a revamp of Argentina's massive loan program and worked steadily to help China embrace sovereign debt restructurings.

She also survived a big personal challenge in 2021 when the IMF's executive board expressed its full confidence in her after reviewing allegations that while working at the World Bank she pressured staff to alter data to favor China. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen put Georgieva on notice at the time that she would closely monitor the IMF's follow-up and evaluate any new facts or findings, but the two have developed a good relationship since that time, according to sources familiar with both officials.

Sources familiar with the process said the selection would be settled quickly once Europe unites around a candidate. While Georgieva's term won't end for months, some say it makes sense to make decisions before the April spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank, so the leadership issue does not overshadow the already full agenda for the meetings.

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