New IMF evaluation chief named

• Pages: 121-123

Page 121

Thomas A. Bernes will be the new director of the IMF's Independent Evaluation Office (IEO). Bernes, currently Executive Secretary of the joint IMF-World Bank Development Committee, succeeds Montek Singh Ahluwalia. The IEO, which provides objective analyses of various aspects of the IMF's work, has taken up, among other topics, capital account crises, technical assistance, and fiscal adjustment in IMFsupported programs.

Page 123

Bernes named to head IMF's Independent Evaluation Office

Thomas A. Bernes, a Canadian national, accepted the IMF Executive Board's offer to head the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) starting on June 6. The IEO, established by the Executive Board in July 2001, operates autonomously from IMF management and is designed to provide objective and independent assessments of various aspects of the IMF's work.

Its reports have taken up a wide range of topics, including capital account crises, technical assistance, and fiscal adjustment in IMF-supported programs.

Bernes, who succeeds Montek Singh Ahluwalia of India, currently is Executive Secretary of the joint IMF-World Bank Development Committee, a forum to facilitate consensusbuilding among member country governments on development issues. In 1996-2001, prior to his appointment to the Development Committee Secretariat, Bernes served as IMF Executive Director of the constituency representing Canada, Ireland, and the Caribbean. From 1992 to 1996, he was Assistant Deputy Minister of...