Harvard
professor Carmen Reinhart has just been appointed as the new Chief Economist at
the World Bank. The Chief Economist at the IMF, Gita Gopinath, has also come
from Harvard University. Both ladies have collaborated with Professor Ken
Rogoff, from the same university. They might all think alike which is not the best
approach in times of crisis. Diversity and contradictory opinions are much more
creative, at a time when we have to imagine a new economic order. But they are
all for debt forgiveness when the challenge is too big to be managed, which is
not a bad approach. And they have studied financial crashes and deep national crisis
extensively.
People
say that when two economists discuss there are at least three divergent
opinions. In this case, let us see if both ladies can bring fresh ideas to their
institutions. The IMF and the WB will be very much in demand in many countries
in the post-Covid situation. They must propose an approach that goes beyond
austerity and keeps investments flowing across the globe, particularly in the
direction of poorer countries.
No comments:
Post a Comment