“One candidate, current Managing Director Christine Lagarde, has been nominated,” reads a statement by the IMF executive board confirming of a second five-year term for IMF chief Christine Lagarde last Thursday.
The new term begins in July, five years after she was first named to head the IMF in July 2011. Lagarde, 60, also has received numerous expressions of support from officials in Europe and Latin America.
The decision came as no other candidate had emerged for the position by the time the nominating process closed on Wednesday. Subsequently, the global financial institution announced there were no other candidates for the position.
IMF, a 188 member nations, said through its board that it would hold meetings with Lagarde and wants to complete the selection process “as soon as possible.”
IMF’s largest stakeholder and long a strong supporter, the United States has declared its official backing immediately, extoling of Lagarde’s leadership in steering the crisis lender through a critical time for the global economy.
US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew announced Washington’s support for Lagarde’s second term, praising her for an “exceptional job” in leading the IMF over the last five years.
“I’ve known Christine for many years, and I’ve seen time and again her ability to bring people together on major global issues and drive toward solutions,” he said.
“As in 2011, we are encouraged by the broad support she has secured among the Fund’s membership, including from the emerging economies.”
Largarde, a former French finance minister, is expected to be formally named the next managing director by early March. In 2011, she easily won a contest with several developing country candidates to take over the IMF as Europe was sinking deep into economic crisis.
