The head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, announced on Tuesday the appointment of Rodrigo Valdes, former Minister of Economy of Chile, as new director of the Department of the Western Hemisphere, a key position for the region and for Argentina because he is the official who oversees the program with our country.
Valdes, what He was a minister between 2015 and 2017 during the administration of Michelle Bachelet, He will take office on May 1, replacing the Brazilian Ilan Goldfajn, who resigned from the IMF last year to run for the presidency of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), a position he assumed at the end of the year.
The novelty is known when the approval of the a new reserve target for the current program with Argentina, as part of the fourth revision of the agreement signed last year. A team of Economy officials has been negotiating the details with Fund technicians since last week.
The negotiations of the program with Argentina today are entrusted to a technical team, led by the Venezuelan Luis Cubeddu, but are always supervised by the head of the Department. The 57,000 million dollar program with our country was originally signed by the government of Mauricio Macri and with Alejandro Werner at the head of the Department. After Werner’s departure, the renegotiation with the current government took place under the supervision of Goldfajn.
“I am delighted to have Rodrigo join our team as the new Western Hemisphere Department Director. He is no stranger to the IMF, having served as Deputy Director in the Sustainable Health and Europe Departments from 2009 to 2012, where he was remembered as a thoughtful steward and for his intellectual clout as he helped countries overcome the aftermath of the global financial crisis,” Georgieva said in a statement.
Valdés, 56, is currently a professor of economics at the School of Government of the Catholic University of Chile. Previously, he served as Chile’s Minister of Economy from 2015 to 2017. He spent more than 16 years in the Chilean public sector holding various management positions at both the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank, where he was Director of Research and Chief Economist responsible for producing the Bank’s Monetary Policy Report and overseeing macroeconomic analysis.
In the statement, Georgieva also points out Valdés’ experience in the Chilean banking sector. At BTG Pactual led the macroeconomic research team for Latin America excluding Brazil and was chairman of the board and executive committee of Banco Estado, the only state-owned bank in Chile. He also worked at Barclays Capital in New York as director and chief economist for Latin America.
“Rodrigo has tremendous experience in the public and private sectors and is widely respected for his leadership and academic qualities. His stellar track record as a policy-maker, his excellent analytical and communication skills, and his in-depth understanding of international finance and of the IMF will be invaluable to our members at this critical time for the region and the global community,” added Georgieva.
Valdés holds a doctorate in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a BA in economics from the University of Chile. The IMF notes that he is a prolific author whose economic research has appeared in international journals and books. He has also worked as an editor for various publications and has received numerous academic and political influence awards in Latin America and the United States, including “Most Influential Economist of the Year” from leading Chilean newspapers.
Source: Clarin
