IMF: Weekend Read, International Women's Day...

 

Dear MARIA, In today's edition, we highlight: International Women's Day Lessons for multilateralism March F&D magazine Shipping disruptions Egypt, Uganda, US banking sector, and much more

GENDER International Women's Day

Empowering women greatly benefits communities, while gender discrimination holds societies back, noted IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva in an event marking International Women’s Day. The Managing Director was joined by World Food Programme Executive Director Cindy McCain for a fireside chat on empowering women to accelerate progress, moderated by Abebe Aemro Selassie, the director of the IMF's Africa department. “What I have seen since I came [to the Fund] are two interesting phenomena: the acceptance that when data tell you a story, you have to follow the story….and what the data tells us is that gender inequality brings a cost to communities. And on the flipside, when girls are educated, when women can be part of the labor force if they want to….. that generates better opportunities,” Georgieva said. The Managing Director also pointed to the Fund’s Gender Strategy, noting that it is already under implementation. Read the Managing Director's op-ed on the Economic Power of Gender Equality, co-authored with Nadia Calviño and Odile Renaud-Basso.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION Lessons for Multilateralism (Credit: Imagem: FMI) Faced with regional wars, populism and protectionism, the Fund faces many of the same challenges as it did at the time of its inception, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a speech to mark the 75th anniversary of Austria’s membership of the Fund. “Looking forward, we do face a choice. We can choose the path of instability and confrontation. Or we can choose the path of cooperation and shared prosperity. At this pivotal moment in history, the IMF’s mandate is more important than ever,” Georgieva said. At the same event, Ceyla Pazarbasioglu, the director of the IMF’s strategy, policy and review department, used her speech to discuss the changing role of the Bretton Woods institutions, present-day challenges to multilateralism, and lessons learned from the August 2021 $650 billion general allocation of the IMF’s global reserve asset, Special Drawing Rights. Read Georgieva’s statement issued at the conclusion of the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting.

FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT Economics: How should it change? (Credit: Tyler Comrie) “Extensive professional soul-searching since the global financial crisis of 2008 has focused on how economics can better integrate social sciences and elevate welfare and distributional issues,” writes editor-in-chief, Gita Bhatt, in the new March issue of Finance & Development magazine. “There has been much rethinking of macroeconomics and the design of policy approaches. And there is a growing consensus that the profession must be open to new ideas and frameworks if it hopes to solve the world’s biggest problems.” Asking, Economics: How should it change? this issue of F&D takes a fresh look at the discipline. We invited leading economists and other eminent thinkers to share their views on how economics must change to better address the challenges of the 21st century. Contributors include Angus Deaton, Atif Mian, Dani Rodrik, Diane Coyle, Jayati Ghosh, Jeffry Frieden, John H. Cochrane, Kate Raworth, Katharina Pistor, Michael Kremer, Michael Olabisi, Niall Kishtainy, Ruchir Agarwal, Signe Krogstrup, Thomas Sangill, Mette von Sicard, Suresh Naidu, Ulrike Malmendier, Clint Hamilton, Wendy Carlin and many others.

MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA IMF Staff and the Egyptian Authorities Reach Staff Level Agreement (Credit: hadynyah/iStock by Getty Images) IMF staff and the Egyptian authorities have reached staff level agreement on a set of comprehensive policies and reforms needed to complete the first and second reviews under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement. Amid a more challenging external environment, the authorities have requested an augmentation of the original arrangement from US$3 billion to about US$8 billion. The comprehensive policy package seeks to preserve debt sustainability, restore price stability, and reinstate a well-functioning exchange rate system, while continuing to push forward deep structural reforms to promote private sector-led growth and job creation.

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT Ten Years of IMF Online Learning (Credit: Maxiphoto/iStock by Getty Images) The IMF is marking the 10th anniversary of its Online Learning Program, which offers online training across a range of macro-critical topics, including debt management, financial stability, climate change, and digitalization. So far, about 200,000 people have taken at least one of our 90+ courses. The program has strengthened training through blended learning—combining online with in-person training. It also offers microlearning videos to ensure everyone can benefit—even those with limited digital capacity. In a video, the IMF’s Gita Gopinath talks about some of the key achievements of the program. Kentaro Ogata from Japan’s Ministry of Finance explains why the country has been a major supporter of the program since its inception.

In this podcast, ATD Fourth World’s Martin Kalisa reflects on why so many anti-poverty efforts fall short and stresses the importance of including poor people in designing anti-poverty efforts to make them more likely to succeed.

Weekly Roundup UGANDA Economic Recovery Gaining Pace Uganda’s recovery is becoming more broad-based, supported by falling inflation and oil industry investments, noted IMF Deputy Managing Director Bo Li at the conclusion of the Executive Board’s fifth review of Uganda’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) Arrangement. Growth is projected at 6 percent in FY 23/24 and rising to 7 percent in FY24/25 and the medium term, while core inflation is expected to remain subdued at 2.8 percent in FY24/25 and rising to the Bank of Uganda’s target of 5 percent in the medium term. The ECF arrangement, for a total of $1 billion, was approved in 2021 to support Uganda’s near-term response to the COVID-19 pandemic and boost more inclusive private sector-led long-term growth. FINANCIAL SECTOR US Banking Sector since the March 2023 Turmoil In March 2023, the US banking sector turmoil sent a shockwave through the global financial system, and raised concerns about the soundness of the rest of the US banking sector. A global financial stability note offers an analysis of the main attributes of the affected banks to assess the extent to which vulnerabilities persist in a weak tail of banks. The note also provides a prospective assessment by evaluating the medium-term risks to financial stability posed by this weak tail. STAFF PAPER Europe’s Energy Transition and Security Russia’s war in Ukraine has disrupted the supply of natural gas for many European countries, triggering an energy crisis and affecting energy security. A staff paper finds that most European countries have limited GDP losses but those more dependent on Russian natural gas face moderate losses. European fossil fuel consumption and emissions are reduced and after accounting for the war impacts, achieving Europe’s emission targets becomes slightly less costly. STAFF PAPER Exposure to Past Inflationary Episodes A staff paper using individual-level survey data for both advanced economies and emerging markets spanning over 45 years for 42 countries shows that cohorts who have had higher exposure to past inflationary episodes systematically express higher concerns over rising prices. The link between past high inflation exposure and expressed concerns over price stability is particularly strong when an individual’s exposure occurs in the latter part of her working-age.

The chart of the week shows that disruptions at two critical shipping routes have held back global trade at two critical shipping routes in the past few months. Attacks on vessels in the Red Sea area reduced traffic through the Suez Canal, diverting ships around the Cape of Good Hope—while a severe drought reduced passage through the Panama Canal. Official statistics on recorded imports and exports based on customs records may be affected by the temporary impact of ships being re-routed, making it more difficult to gauge the underlying momentum of global trade and economic activity in the coming months. Read our analysis

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

MARCH 12, 2024, 9 AM 12th African Fiscal Forum This year’s Forum, Developing Fiscal Strategies Amidst Rising Debts, will discuss how to set fiscal targets and determine the pace and composition of the potential adjustment depending on countries’ specific circumstances. The discussion will also explore the role of institutions in addressing implementation challenges and how those institutions can be strengthened. IMF Fiscal Affairs Department Director Vitor Gaspar will open the Forum; his remarks will be followed by a high-level roundtable moderated by IMF African Department Director Abebe Aemro Selassie. Watch here

Thank you again very much for your interest in the Weekend Read! Be sure to let us know what issues and trends we should have on our radar.

Miriam Van Dyck Editor IMF Weekend Read mvandyck@IMF.org

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