IMF meetings marked by growing push to end war in Ukraine, focus on Africa - IMFC chair

Record ID: 1693035

  • Title: IMF meetings marked by growing push to end war in Ukraine, focus on Africa - IMFC chair
  • Date: 13th October 2022
  • Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 13, 2022) (REUTERS) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO LISTENING TO QUESTION BY JOURNALIST (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "Well it's true that in the last two-three years we've been confronted with unprecedented crisis. It's a crisis after a crisis and right now I think the most dominant feeling is one of worry and uncertainty. We don't know how long this war will last (and) what the implications may be. What we are certain is that it does have large implications and they are global. So all countries are affected, be it by energy supplies, or food supplies or the price of energy and inflation, and that I think is a wake up call to all of us, when we are confronted with global challenges such as these. We need to respond with our global multilateral institutions." CALVINO TALKING TO JOURNALIST (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "I think that there is a sense (that) this is serious, we need to work together, this is the time to find effective responses. And of course, I think the language has become tougher on Russia to stop the war because of the suffering that is going to hit mostly, most vulnerable countries, poorer parts of our societies." CALVINO LISTENING TO QUESTION FROM REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "Right now, we're very much focused on dealing with the urgent needs. That's putting up reinsurance mechanisms, financial support mechanisms, debt relief mechanisms to protect the financial stability of the whole world and support most vulnerable countries." CALVINO TALKING TO AID (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "The particular attention to the war in Ukraine it's not just having to do with the country or this particular conflict, (there) many other conflicts in the world. But because this is a symbol of a tectonic shift in the bases that have guided the world order since the end of World War II." CALVINO TALKING TO JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "We had a meeting yesterday with the G7 and African finance ministers precisely to listen to them very carefully and to address their concerns, to try to upgrade our mechanisms so as to be able to provide the best possible support to those that are going through difficulties. And I think that was a very necessary and a very good dialogue we had." CALVINO LISTENING TO QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "So I think it goes beyond the actual conflict, it is having a worldwide impact. And it is - I think- forcing us to look at the world geopolitically, also from the economic and financial point of view with a different perspective. In my view, this should reinforce our multilateral commitment and our ability to coordinate our policies and to work together, of course." CALVINO LISTENING TO QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPANISH FINANCE MINISTER AND IMF CHAIRWOMAN, NADIA CALVINO, SAYING: "Indeed China is a necessary partner. It's indispensable that we have them in the room and in new discussions when it comes to debt relief." CALVINO LISTENING TO QUESTION
  • Embargoed: 27th October 2022 22:43
  • Keywords: Africa Calvino G7 IMF Ukraine inflation war
  • Location: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
  • City: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: Government/Politics,United States
  • Reuters ID: LVA001215313102022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:International Monetary Fund members are calling more strongly for an end to the war in Ukraine, which is having a sharply negative impact on global economic growth, Spanish Finance Minister Nadia Calvino told Reuters on Thursday (October 13).
    Calvino, elected in January to head the IMF's steering committee, said this week's annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank were marked by deep uncertainty about the war, which she said symbolized a "tectonic shift" in the principles that have guided the global world order since the end of World War Two.
    "The most dominant feeling is one of worry and uncertainty. We don't know how long this war will last (and) what the implications may be," Calvino said, citing the global repercussions of war-related surges in food and energy prices.
    Calvino said IMF member countries were increasingly concerned given the duration of the war and its impact on inflation, which has triggered sharp tightening of monetary policy in countries around the world.
    "There is a sense (that) this is serious, we need to work together," she said. "And of course, I think the language has become tougher on Russia to stop the war because of the suffering that is going to hit mostly most vulnerable countries, poorer parts of our societies."
    Calvino said the global nature of the overlapping challenges facing the world was a "wakeup call" about the importance of international institutions like the IMF.
    She was optimistic that the global lender was up to the task despite frustration voiced by some African leaders that the Ukraine war has diminished focus on crises facing poorer nations, and cited the creation of new lending instruments such as food shock window set up to help countries hit hard by war-related shocks.
    "Right now, we're very much focused on dealing with the urgent needs. That's putting up reinsurance mechanisms, financial support mechanisms, debt relief mechanisms to protect the financial stability of the whole world," she said.
    She said Group of Seven rich countries also met on Wednesday (October 12) with African finance ministers to address their specific concerns and to find ways to best support their populations.
    "That was a very necessary and a very good dialogue we had," she said, adding that the impact of the war in Ukraine was magnified because it reflected a significant shift in the world order. "In my view, this should reinforce our multilateral commitment and our ability to coordinate our policies and to work together, of course."
    Quota reform, another key demand of IMF critics and activists, would be addressed later, she said.
    (Production: Julio Cesar-Chavez, Bernat Parera)
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