It was a major breakthrough for Africa over the weekend as Ghana’s Central Bank Governor; Dr. Ernest Addison was appointed Chairman of the Board of Governors of IMF and the World Bank Group. With this appointment, Dr. Addison will chair the Board of Governors of IMF and the World Bank Group for 2020. To this end, he will preside over the 2020 plenary and other committee responsibilities.
Dr. Addison takes over from Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum who is the Fijian Attorney-General and the Minister for Economy, Civil Service and Communications. The Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the IMF consisting of one governor and one alternate governor for each member country, the governor who is mostly appointed by the member country of the Brettonwoods institution is usually the minister of finance or the head of the central bank.
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While the Board of Governors has delegated most of its powers to the IMF’s Executive Board, it retains the right to approve quota increases, special drawing right (SDR) allocations, the admittance of new members, compulsory withdrawal of members, and amendments to the Articles of Agreement and By-Laws.
The Board of Governors also elects or appoints executive directors and is the ultimate arbiter on issues related to the interpretation of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement. Voting by the Board of Governors usually takes place by mail-in ballot.
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With this elevation, Dr. Addison will among other things chair other functional Committees of the two institutions. He will chair the Joint Committee on Remuneration of Executive Directors and their Alternates (JCR). His duties also include the appointment of two other Committee members (on the recommendation of the President of the Bank and the Managing Director of the Fund), reviewing briefing papers, and convening meetings of the Committee. And equally chair the Joint Procedures Committee (JPC)/MIGA Procedures Committee.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry.