IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath To Leave Her Post And Return To Harvard In January

Gita Gopinath To Leave IMF: Gita Gopinath who is currently the International Monetary Fund's chief economist will leave her post and return to Harvard University's economics department in January. The IMF announced on Tuesday.

The University had extended Gopinath's leave of absence by one year, thus enabling her to serve at the IMF for three years, the statement read.

https://t.co/HY7sVnxORv

— Gita Gopinath (@GitaGopinath) October 20, 2021

She heads the fund's research department. It produces the quarterly World Economic Outlook report and closely watches GDP growth and makes forecasts. Gopinath was appointed to her current role in October 2018. She succeeds Maurice (Maury) Obstfeld.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva praised Gopinath. Gopinath made history with her appointment as she was the first woman to serve in the top economics post.

"Gita's contribution to the Fund and our membership has been truly remarkable -- quite simply, her impact on the IMF's work has been tremendous," Georgieva said in a statement.

"We benefitted immensely from her sharp intellect and deep knowledge of international finance and macroeconomics as we navigate through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression," the MD added.

Gopinath had a key role in setting global vaccination targets for the Covid-19 pandemic. She also helped set up a Climate Change team inside the IMF to analyze, among other things, optimal climate mitigation policies, Georgieva said. IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath had praised India’s fight against the coronavirus pandemic. She said the country “really stands out” in its vaccination approach.

Professor Gopinath was born and brought up in India and is a US citizen now.  She is an alumna of Lady Shri Ram College in Delhi where she did her Bachelors in Economics. She pursued her Masters in Economics from Delhi School of Economics and University of Washington and earned her Doctorate from Princeton University.

The IMF will soon search for a replacement.