Re-Assessing IMF Governance Reforms:

Quota, Voice, and Executive Board Accountability

 

Hosted by the G-24

Organized by New Rules for Global Finance,

Bretton Woods Project, and Bank Information Center

 

Friday, October 19, 2007, 5:00pm-6:30pm

MC13-121, The World Bank

1818 H Street, NW,

Washington, DC 20433

 

News reports and debates of the IMF’s “legitimacy crisis” are at the forefront of any discussion on the Fund. This event will revisit and further explore the governance and accountability issues that lie at the core of the IMF’s legitimacy, and assess whether proposed reforms can actually redress the steep power imbalance in the Fund.

 

A discussion of governance structures will address the recent plans for achieving consensus on a new formula for quota allocations, the long-standing need for greater voice for low-income countries, the proposals for double-majority voting, and the need for concrete changes in the Fund’s leadership selection process. Accountability in the Fund includes the Executive Board’s accountability mechanisms and the evaluation process of the Fund’s managing director. The political feasibility of implementing these reforms will also be addressed.

 

Chair:

 

Tom Bernes, Director, Independent Evaluation Office

 

 

Panelists:

 

Paolo Nogueira-Batista, Executive Director for South American and Caribbean countries, (Invited)

 

Karin Lissakers, Executive Director, Revenue Watch

 

Ralph Bryant, Senior Fellow in Economic Studies, Brookings Institution

 

Peter Chowla, Policy and Advocacy Officer, Bretton Woods Project