Waterloo, Canada – February 8, 2013 – A near-unprecedented degree of collective action is required on the part of international policy makers, starting with an agreement on economic objectives and a convergence of priorities for the medium term. That is the finding of a new a paper from The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), which makes 17 recommendations to improve the governance of international financial institutions.
In Strengthening International Financial Institutions to Promote Effective International Cooperation, CIGI Distinguished Fellow Thomas A. Bernes warns that policy makers are in danger of missing an opportunity to rectify the long-standing weaknesses in international co-operation revealed by the current global financial and economic crisis.
Bernes’s 17 recommendations for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO) include:
- clarity from each organization on its relationship with the G20;
- clarity on the respective roles of the FSB, the IMF and the World Bank;
- agreement on the role (and requisite resources) of the IMF and World Bank;
- greater progress on the process for an open merit-based system for senior IMF and World Bank appointments and their accountability;
- and, development of an institutional structure for the WTO.
“Global economic cooperation involves more than addressing crises, it must also consider the medium term,” Bernes writes. “The challenge remains that the necessary (and promised) action to tackle global governance issues in order to promote greater economic cooperation has not occurred, and many observers are losing confidence that anything can happen.”
For more information on Strengthening International Financial Institutions to Promote Effective International Cooperation, including a free PDF download, visit http://www.cigionline.org/publications/2013/2/strengthening-international-financial-institutions-promote-effective-internation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Thomas A. Bernes, . Thomas A. Bernes, CIGI distinguished fellow since 2012, held a celebrated career in the Canadian public service and at leading international economic institutions before becoming CIGI’s executive director from 2009 to 2012. Mr. Bernes has held high-level positions at the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Government of Canada.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Declan Kelly, Communications Specialist, CIGI
Tel: 519.885.2444, ext. 7356, Email: [email protected]
Kevin Dias, Communications Specialist, CIGI
Tel: 519.885.2444, ext. 7238, Email: [email protected]
The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) is an independent, non-partisan think tank on international governance. Led by experienced practitioners and distinguished academics, CIGI supports research, forms networks, advances policy debate and generates ideas for multilateral governance improvements. Conducting an active agenda of research, events and publications, CIGI’s interdisciplinary work includes collaboration with policy, business and academic communities around the world. CIGI was founded in 2001 by Jim Balsillie, then co-CEO of Research In Motion (BlackBerry), and collaborates with and gratefully acknowledges support from a number of strategic partners, in particular the Government of Canada and the Government
of Ontario. For more information, please visit www.cigionline.org.