Editorial | Keep bitter rivalries out of global bodies
- Feuding between the US and China has spilled over into the boardrooms of the IMF, World Bank and WHO, at a time when they are more needed than ever
The International Monetary Fund and World Bank recently had their annual meetings in Washington. In a world plagued by energy shortages, supply-chain disruption and an inflationary threat following the Covid-19 pandemic, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank are more needed than ever.
But their annual meetings have been overshadowed by a controversy blown out of all proportion. Since it involves China, it doesn’t look like it will go away any time soon. The furore has to do with IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva when she was No 2 at the World Bank.
She was accused of pressuring a data team responsible for compiling the bank’s flagship annual publication, Doing Business, to move China’s rankings up seven places to 78th in its index, for the 2018 edition.
If this had involved any other country, it’s doubtful US politicians would have fretted so much, but they have been relentless. An American law firm hired to investigate concluded Georgieva did exercise undue influence.
Washington has called for her resignation. The IMF board has announced she will stay.
A second report probing more broadly into possible wrongdoings by World Bank staff will come out soon. It may offer more ammunition for critics of Georgieva, who has long been considered too “China-friendly”.