According to the International Monetary Fund,
Chief Economist Gita Gopinath will quit her position in January of next year to return to Harvard University’s famed Economics Department. In January 2019, the 49-year-old well-known Indian-American economist joined the IMF as Chief Economist. When she joined the Washington-based global lender, she was the John Zwaanstra Professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard. The search for Gopinath’s replacement will begin soon, according to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.”Gita’s contribution to the Fund and our membership has been genuinely exceptional,” Georgieva said. “Quite simply, her influence on the IMF’s work has been tremendous.” Gopinath, who was born in Mysuru, is the IMF’s first female Chief Economist.
She was also the Director of the International Monetary Fund’s Research Department. Harvard University granted her a one-year leave of absence on an extraordinary basis, allowing her to work as the IMF’s Chief Economist for three years. “As the Fund’s first female Chief Economist, she made history, and her acute intellect and extensive knowledge of international finance and macroeconomics helped us greatly as we navigated through the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression.
“Gita also earned the respect and admiration of colleagues in the Research Department throughout the Fund, as well as throughout the membership, for directing analytically rigorous work and policy-relevant projects with significant impact and influence,” Georgieva added. According to the IMF, Gopinath co-authored the “Pandemic Paper” on how to halt the COVID-19 pandemic, which set universally endorsed targets for vaccination the world, as one of her numerous key endeavors.
