IMF Executive Board receives nomination of Horst Köhler for Managing Director

• Pages: 81-82

Page 81

On Tuesday, March 14, the IMF Executive Board received a formal nomination of Horst Köhler for the post of the Managing Director of the IMF.

Köhler, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), was nominated on behalf of the European Union member states by Joao Santos, an Advisor in the Executive Board constituency that includes Portugal, which currently holds the presidency of the European Union. Bernd Esdar, Executive Director for Germany, made a statement in support of the nomination of Köhler (see page 82).

The Board was also informed of the withdrawal of Eisuke Sakakibara, former Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs in the Ministry of Finance of Japan, as a candidate for the post of IMF Managing Director.

On Thursday, March 16, Jose Pedro de Morais, Jr., the Executive Director representing the constituency of African countries that include Angola, announced that he had withdrawn the nomination of Stanley Fischer, currently Acting IMF Managing Director, to the positionPage 82 of Managing Director, at Fischer’s request. Fischer also issued a statement, excerpts of which follow:

“I was honored to have been nominated for the position of Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund by Mr. Jose Pedro de Morais, Jr., and by the support of other Executive Directors.

“In view of the emerging consensus behind the candidacy of Horst Köhler, President, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, I have asked Mr. de Morais to withdraw my nomination. I am deeply grateful for the confidence he and his colleagues and the countries they represent have expressed in me.

“I had an excellent meeting this morning with Mr. Köhler, during which we discussed the challenges the IMF faces. I am confident that under his leadership the IMF will become an even more effective institution. I look forward to working closely with him, my colleagues in management and the staff, as well as the members of the IMF, as we move forward.”

Köhler holds a doctorate in economics and political science from Tübingen University. He has been president of the EBRD since September 1998. Previous positions include president of the German Savings Bank Association and European Savings Bank Group from 1993 to 1998. He also served as Germany’s Deputy Minister of Finance from 1990 to 1993, having previously held a number of posts at the Federal Ministry of Economics and the Federal Ministry of Finance...