The silent starting gun has been fired. After Christine Lagarde’s naming as next European Central Bank president, the runners are already off in the race to succeed her as managing director of the IMF. This is a pivotal role. The multilateral order of which the fund is a pillar is facing multiple challenges. By keeping an American lock on the World Bank with the appointment of David Malpass, the US has perpetuated its half of the unofficial duopoly whereby a European heads the IMF. Yet the scale of the tasks ahead makes it vital the IMF contest is genuinely open and aimed at securing the outstanding candidate, on merit — European or not.
無聲的發令槍已經打響。在克莉絲蒂娜•拉加德(Christine Lagarde)被提名爲歐洲央行(ECB)下一任行長之後，接替她擔任國際貨幣基金組織(IMF)總裁的角逐者已投入競賽。這是一個關鍵的角色。IMF是多邊秩序的支柱，而如今這種秩序正面臨多重挑戰。美國人戴維•馬爾帕斯(David Malpass)被任命爲世界銀行(World Bank)行長，讓美國得以延續這種非正式的雙頭壟斷中屬於美國的那一頭，另一頭則是由歐洲人執掌IMF。然而，鑑於IMF未來面臨的任務之艱鉅，至關重要的是，IMF總裁的角逐要真正開放，並擇優選定候選人——不管其是不是歐洲人。