IMF to Elect Third African Representative on Executive Board in October

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) will elect a third representative for Sub-Saharan Africa on its Executive Board at the forthcoming IMF/World Bank annual meetings slated for October in Washington DC, United States of America.

This is an important step that complements the African Union’s (AU) new status as a permanent member of the G20.

IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva gave the hint in an article published on the multilateral lender's blogpost.

In the article titled, 'How the G20 Can Build on the World Economy’s Recent Resilience',

Georgieva underscored the need for a stronger, more equitable, more balanced and more sustainable international system so that millions more can benefit.

She said, "To reach that goal, we must channel that inventive spirit once again.

"But we can—and must—do more. Our membership also recognised the importance of realigning quota shares to better reflect members’ relative positions in the world economy, while protecting the voices of the poorest members.

"With that goal in mind, we are developing possible approaches to realignment, including through a new quota formula. "This comes in addition to a third chair for Sub-Saharan Africa on our Executive Board for election at this year’s Annual Meetings—an important step that complements the African Union’s new status as a permanent member of the G20."

She added: "As recent military conflicts have laid bare, we live in an increasingly polarised world. The tensions are fragmenting the global economy along geopolitical lines—around 3,000 trade-restricting measures were imposed in 2023, nearly three times the number in 2019.

"No country stands to gain from the splintering of the world economy into blocs. Restoring faith in international cooperation is critical."

According to her, in the eight decades since its founding, the IMF has continually evolved to meet the needs of its membership, adding that since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Fund had deployed $354 billion in financing to 97 countries, including 57 low-income countries.

With countries likely to face larger and more complex crises, she argued that countries must work together to reinforce the global financial safety net, with the IMF at its core.

"Last year, our shareholders gave us a strong vote of confidence. Among other measures, they stepped up to meet our fundraising targets for the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, which provides interest-free loans to low-income countries.

"And our shareholders agreed to increase our permanent quota resources by 50 percent. G20 countries can lead the way by quickly ratifying the quota increase, which will allow us to maintain our lending capacity and reduce our reliance on borrowed resources," she stated.

After several years of shocks, she noted that the IMF expects global growth to reach 3.1 per cent this year, with inflation falling and job markets holding up.

She lamented that low global growth affects everyone, but has particularly troubling implications for emerging-market and developing economies.

These countries impressively weathered successive global shocks, supported by stronger institutional and policy frameworks, she stressed, noting thar their slowing growth prospects have made convergence with advanced economies even more distant.

"Other factors contribute to the complex global picture. Geoeconomic fragmentation is deepening as countries shift trade and capital flows.