IMF Podcasts

Jason Braganza: Africa's Debt Further Complicates Recovery

Earlier this month, AFRODAD's Jason Braganza was invited to participate in the IMF and European Commission's annual African Fiscal Forum, where Finance Ministers, heads of international agencies, and development partners discussed ways to support African economies through the pandemic. In this podcast, Braganza says countries need more fiscal space to boost social protection systems, provide stimulus for businesses, and create resources for vaccination procurement and rollout programs. T...

Romain Duval on Rising Market Power

Corporate market power has been on the rise in recent decades, but a new IMF study shows the pandemic has strengthened price markups for dominant firms and increased the concentration of revenues among the biggest players in sectors such as technology and pharma. The Brookings Institution and Bruegel hosted a conversation with Kristalina Georgieva, IMF Managing Director, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, to talk...

Janet Yellen and Kristalina Georgieva talk Womenomics

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen celebrate International Women's day with a conversation about the advancement of women in the field of economics.  Transcript Watch the webcast HERE

Ruchir Agarwal on the Benefits of Nurturing Talent

There are talented people everywhere, with ideas that could make the world a better place to live in. But what does it take for a promising young innovator to reach their full potential? In this podcast, IMF economist Ruchir Agarwal says global scientific output could be more than 40 percent higher if talented youth around the world had equal opportunities to nurture their abilities. Look for Agarwal and coauthors Ina Ganguli and Patrick Gaule's article Embracing the Gift of Global Talent in...

Where you Live = How You Live: Inequality of Opportunity in India

Economists have long studied economic migration between rich and poor countries, but India's large population and significant divergence in per capita incomes between its rich and poor states make it an interesting case study on the implications of economic migration within a fast-growing emerging economy. In this podcast, economists Prakash Loungani and Sriram Balasubramanian discuss how consumption levels in India's rural and urban areas may be driving the migration trends within its borde...

Kristalina Georgieva: Resilience in a New Shock-Prone World

The pandemic has proven in no uncertain terms that people and institutions need to adapt to change. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva was invited by the Albright Institute of Global Affairs at Wellesley College to discuss how the Fund is adapting to the current needs of the global economy and the extent to which the institution has had to rethink its strategies since it was created in 1944 to support economies of the post-war world. The conversation was moderated by Prof. Joseph Joy...

Dr Alice Evans: Feminist Activism to Close the Gender Gap

Global disparities between women and men have narrowed over the twentieth century but despite the strong evidence of the benefits of closing the gender gap, progress has been slow in many parts of the world. Dr Alice Evans has studied women movements across the globe and written extensively on the topic. She was invited by the IMF Africa Department to talk about how feminist activism helps women overcome barriers to greater economic autonomy and is key to achieving gender equality. In this p...

Roxana Mihet on Financial Innovation and Rising Inequality

With the great strides in financial technology in recent years, the lower data processing costs and fees associated with investing in the stock market should have led to broader increases of household wealth. But in this podcast, economist Roxana Mihet says while fintech has reduced barriers to access and held out the promise of gains for all, it may have worsened capital income inequality. Mihet is Assistant Professor of Finance at HEC Lausanne, and her recent study suggests the most likely...

Equitable Vaccine Rollout, Policy Support Key to Financial Stability

Many things can happen within the global financial system to disrupt financial stability, and the pandemic is testing most of them. Fabio Natalucci heads the IMF's Global Financial Stability Report, which analyses trends in the world economy and looks for potential vulnerabilities. The latest update identifies the uneven distribution of vaccines across the globe as one of those vulnerabilities, especially for frontier market economies. In this podcast, Natalucci says while the vaccine rollou...

Impact of AI on Developing Economies

Artificial intelligence and robots are revolutionizing production processes across the globe, but what countries stand to gain most from these new technologies? Economists Andy Berg and Chris Papageorgiou are coauthors of a new study that suggests the so-called AI revolution may widen the gap between rich and poor countries. Transcript Read the blog

Binyamin Appelbaum: Distribution Matters

Since the Industrial Revolution began more than 250 years ago- the world has produced enough wealth for every one of its 8 billion people to live comfortably. Yet, over 40 percent live in poverty, with most of the wealth being held by an increasingly narrow slice of the population. Binyamin Appelbaum says rising inequality is weighing on growth and straining the fabric of liberal democracy. And he squarely places the blame on distribution. In this podcast, Appelbaum says while there has been...

Wenjie Chen: Real-Time Data Shows Widening Gender Gap

Tourism, hospitality, and other contact-intensive sectors with higher shares of female workers came to a dead stop shortly after Covid-19 infections started to spread. But as the labor market readjusts to the new work environment, a new study using real-time data on job listings reveals women–across all sectors, continue to drop out of the workforce at an alarming rate. While official labor market data can paint a confusing picture of the job market under the current conditions, economist We...

Ekkehard Ernst and Sabina Dewan on the Growing Precarity of Work

The global pandemic has caused millions of people to lose their jobs and is widening the gap between white-collar workers who can work from home and those who don’t have the skills or resources to participate in a digitally-driven economy. And with robots and automation on the rise, COVID-19 appears to have ushered in a new normal for the global workplace. But in this podcast, JustJobs Network President Sabina Dewan, and ILO economist Ekkehard Ernst, argue this "new normal" isn't really new ...

Ian Goldin on Data and Statistics: Signposts in the Fog

Covid-19 has shown the important role that data and statistics play in assessing the disruptions caused by the pandemic–economic and otherwise–and implementing measures to mitigate its impact. The IMF's Statistics Department brings together leading thinkers in the world of data in its annual Statistical Forum. This year, Ian Goldin was invited to give a keynote speech on Economics, Institutions, and Multilateralism in the context of Covid-19, and to discuss his book The Butterfly Defect with...

Ulrich Volz: Pandemic is but a Prelude to Looming Climate Crisis

Despite long-standing warnings from scientists about the risks of a pandemic, the world was simply unprepared for this one. Ulrich Volz says the same is true for climate change. Volz is the director of the Center for Sustainable Finance at SOAS University of London and in this podcast, he says many countries will find themselves in a permanent crisis mode unless concerted efforts are made to strengthen investment to mitigate and adapt to climate change, Volz's article Investing in a Green R...

جهاد أزعور: على السياسات أن تساعد منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا على الخروج من الأزمة أقوى من ذي قبل.

  بلدان الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا استجابت لجائحة كوفيد-19 باتخاذ إجراءات سريعة وصارمة للتخفيف من انتشار الجائحة وحدة تأثيرها ولكنها لا تزال تواجه بيئة قاسية يشوبها عدم اليقين. فتشير آخر التوقعات لآفاق الاقتصاد في المنطقة إلى أن البلدان المصدرة للنفط تضررت على وجه الخصوص بدرجة بالغة من "صدمة مزدوجة" تمثلت في الأثر الاقتصادي لحالات الإغلاق العام وما ترتب عليها من هبوط حاد في الطلب على النفط وفي أسعاره. جهاز أزعور يلقي الضوء على توقعات صندوق النقد الدولي للآفاق الاقتصادية في المنطقة. ويقول أ...

Jihad Azour: Policies to Help Middle East, North Africa Emerge Stronger

The Middle East and North Africa responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with swift and stringent measures to mitigate its spread and impact but continue to face an uncertain and difficult environment. The latest outlook for the region shows oil exporters, in particular, were hard hit by a “double-whammy” of the economic impact of lockdowns and a sharp decline in oil demand and prices. Jihad Azour heads the IMF's outlook for the region. In this podcast, he says while containing the health crisis ...

L'Afrique subsaharienne face à la reconquête du terrain perdu

La pandémie mondiale a exercé une pression intense sur les économies de toute l'Afrique subsaharienne. De nombreux gouvernements luttent pour maintenir la stabilité macroéconomique tout en répondant aux besoins fondamentaux de leurs populations. Papa N'Diaye dirige les perspectives économiques du FMI pour la région. Dans ce podcast, il dit que l'économie de l'Afrique subsaharienne connaîtra sa pire contraction jamais enregistrée cette année, ramenant le PIB par habitant aux niveaux de 2013. ...

Sub-Saharan Africa Faced with Regaining Lost Ground

The global pandemic has put intense pressure on economies across sub-Saharan Africa. Many governments are struggling to maintain macroeconomic stability while also meeting the basic needs of their populations. Papa N'Diaye heads the IMF's economic outlook for the region. In this podcast, he says sub-Saharan Africa's economy will see its worst contraction on record this year, bringing real per capita incomes back to 2013 levels. Papa N’Diaye heads the Regional Studies Division in the IMF’s ...

Michael Kremer: Investing in Vaccines Now Would Buy Time, Save $Billions

In the early 2000s, Nobel Laureate, Michael Kremer helped develop the design of advance market commitment models (AMCs). They were used to incentivize the private sector to work on issues of relevance for the developing world by pledging that if they developed an appropriate vaccine, funds would be available for those countries to purchase it. The approach resulted in billions of dollars being devoted to pneumococcal vaccines for strains common in developing countries, saving hundreds of tho...

Unprecedented Fiscal Response to an Unprecedented Crisis

Seven months after the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic, more than 1 million people have died of the disease and trillions of dollars have been spent in an effort to contain its devastating impact on economies across the globe. The latest Fiscal Monitor looks at what governments can do in the different phases of the pandemic to reduce the impact of the recession. Vitor Gaspar heads the semiannual publication. In this podcast, he says the massive fiscal support provided s...

Global Financial Stability: Policy Support Builds Bridge to Recovery

While economies across the globe continue to feel the pressures from the pandemic, the latest Global Financial Stability Report shows the extraordinary fiscal and monetary policy measures taken by governments, Central Banks and International Financial Institutions have helped pull the global economy back from the brink. Fabio Natalucci leads the team of IMF economists who produce the report. In this podcast, he says policymakers should continue to carefully sequence their response based on t...

Kristalina Georgieva: The Long Ascent from the Depths of the Crisis

As the pandemic continues to wreak havoc on people and economies across the globe, the IMF and World Bank prepare for their second round of virtual meetings since the start of the crisis. In her customary curtain raiser speech, IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva says while next week's outlook will show a small upward revision to the 2020 global forecast, countries are facing what she calls "The long ascent"—a difficult climb that will be uneven, uncertain and prone to setbacks. T...

Kristalina Georgieva Talks Inequality with Oxfam

The pandemic is adding pressure on society's most vulnerable and could lead to a significant rise in income inequality. In this podcast, IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, talks with Max Lawson and Nadia Daar on the Equals podcast. The podcast was created by Oxfam International and focuses on inequality. Georgieva shares her views on the direction of inequality, the IMF's role in stabilizing economies amid the pandemic, and offers a glimpse into her own life experiences growing up ...

Small Elephants Play Big Role in Fighting Climate Change

While the African elephant is the largest and the most famous land animal in the world, very few people know anything about the African forest elephant. Forest elephants are smaller and live in densely wooded rainforests. Their numbers are declining thanks to deforestation and poachers and likely face extinction if nothing is done to protect them. Other than local conservationists and the biologists who study them, forest elephants have few advocates. But what if people knew that African for...

Rethinking Work During and After Lockdown

While our work environments changed literally overnight, the impact of lockdowns on the nature of work is likely to last well beyond the pandemic. In a study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, scholars from Harvard and Stern Business Schools look at the ongoing challenges for organizations and workers struggling to adapt and perform amid the global pandemic. Jeffrey Polzer is a Professor in the Organizational Behavior Department at Harvard Business School and a co-author ...

Divided by Degrees: Angus Deaton on how More Americans Without B.A.’s are Dying of Despair

After a century-long decline, mortality rates in the U.S. have flattened- even increased for non-Hispanic whites in middle age. In this podcast, Nobel laureate, Angus Deaton describes how people are dying at an alarming rate from suicides, drug overdoses and alcohol-related diseases, and how the largest increases in mortality are happening among those without a bachelor's degree. In their latest book titled Deaths of Despair, Deaton and Princeton economist Anne Case look at how approaches...

Paul Krugman on Zombie ideas and Economic Recovery

There are many facets of the IMF's work that people don't often hear about, one is capacity development; helping governments strengthen their ability to make good policy decisions and to implement them. Nobel Laureate, Paul Krugman was invited by the Institute for Capacity Development to share his insight into where the economy stands now in the context of the global pandemic; his thoughts on what an economic recovery might look like and what policies may help it along. Professor Krugman joi...

Kristalina Georgieva and David Pilling on Africa's Outlook

The IMF's latest Economic Outlook for sub-Saharan Africa is considerably worse than its April outlook and is subject to massive uncertainty. Economic activity this year is now projected to contract by some 3.2 percent, reflecting a weaker global economy and measures to contain the spread of the virus. In this podcast, Financial Times Africa Editor, David Pilling, and Kristalina Georgieva discuss the profound economic consequences of the pandemic for the continent and how the Fund is support...

Systemic Hazards and the Spheres of Well-Being

The 2008 global financial crisis and the current pandemic have put enormous pressure on societies and exposed cracks in the systems we all depend on to survive. These types of global crises are forcing a reckoning about the world’s ability to manage systemic hazards. In this podcast, Ann Florini and Sunil Sharma say with increasing fragility in political, social, economic, and environmental systems, the 21st century is set to experience massive disruptions that pose serious, possibly existen...

Vietnam: A Remarkable Response with Limited Means

“The storm is a good opportunity for the pine and the cypress to show their strength and stability,” said Ho Chi Minh, the Father of the Vietnamese Nation. And it turns out Vietnam has shown its strength in weathering the COVID-19 storm. Era Dabla-Norris and Anne-Marie Gulde-Wolf are both economists in the IMF's Asia Pacific Department, and in this podcast, they say Vietnam's approach should allow for a quicker rebound. TRANSCRIPT You can read the Country Focus story at IMF

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Digitalizing Sub-Saharan Africa

While connectivity in sub-Saharan Africa lags behind other regions, digitalization is advancing fast and being embraced by those who do have access. Some countries are now global leaders in mobile money transactions—with a share of GDP average close to 25 percent, compared to just 5 percent in the rest of the world. In a region where infrastructure is often lacking, digital technologies offer ways to break down or leap over barriers. IMF economists Preya Sharma and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichae...

Préserver la sécurité alimentaire en Afrique subsaharienne

L'Afrique subsaharienne est en première ligne du changement climatique, avec des conditions météorologiques extrêmes qui font des ravages sur les infrastructures et la production agricole. Mais la crise sanitaire introduit un autre niveau de risque pour la chaîne alimentaire. Dans ce podcast, les économistes du FMI Genet Zinabou et Eric Pondi Endengle disent que l'augmentation de la fréquence et de l'intensité des catastrophes naturelles pèse sur la région, qui dépend fortement de l'agricult...

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Migration Part and Parcel of Healthy Global Economy

Migration has been the focus of heated political debate in recent years, surfacing misconceptions of its real economic impact. But a new study in The World Economic Outlook shows migration improves economic growth and productivity in host countries. In this podcast, IMF economist and co-author of the study, Margaux MacDonald, says supporting migrants now and ensuring migration trends continue beyond the pandemic will help the global economy recover. TRANSCRIPT Look for the BLOG at Blogs....

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Safeguarding Food Security in sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa is on the front lines of climate change with extreme weather wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agricultural production. COVID-19 introduces yet another level of risk to the food chain. In this podcast, IMF economists Pritha Mitra and Seung Mo Choi say the increase in frequency and intensity of natural disasters is weighing down on the region, which relies heavily on rainfed agriculture. The latest Economic Outlook for sub-Saharan Africa looks at how the region can bett...

Ralph Chami: Umbilical Cord of Remittances Under Threat

The pandemic is crippling economies across the globe but for many countries, the economic shock will be magnified by the loss of remittances—money sent home by migrant and guest workers employed in foreign countries. Ralph Chami is an Assistant Director for the Institute for Capacity Development at the IMF. In this podcast, he says remittances are a lifeline for low-income and fragile states and when migrants lose their jobs those remittance flows stop. Chami says it's in everyone's interest...

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Jonathan Ostry on How Pandemics Widen the Gap

While rich and poor are equally vulnerable to the debilitating physical effects of the coronavirus, economist Jonathan Ostry says the economic and social impact of the pandemic is much less equal. Ostry is Deputy Director of the Asia and Pacific Department at the IMF and in this podcast, he says the poor and the working class bear the brunt of pandemics and that policies need to pay specific attention to prevent long-term damage to the livelihoods of society's most vulnerable. Ostry's latest...

Afrique subsaharienne: COVID-19, une menace pour le développement

L'Afrique subsaharienne fait face à une crise sanitaire et économique sans précédent qui menace d'inverser une grande partie des progrès de développement qu'elle a réalisés ces dernières années. Les dernières perspectives économiques régionales montrent une contraction de 1,6% cette année, le pire résultat jamais enregistré. Papa N'Diaye est chef de la recherche au Département Afrique du FMI qui publie les perspectives. Dans ce podcast, N'Diaye dit que d'ici la fin de 2020, la région fera f...

Sub-Saharan Africa: COVID-19 A Threat to Development

Sub-Saharan Africa is facing an unprecedented health and economic crisis that threatens to reverse much of the development progress it's made in recent years. The latest Regional Economic Outlook shows the economy will contract by 1.6 percent this year; the worst reading on record. Papa N'Diaye is Head of Research in the IMF’s African Department that publishes the outlook. In this podcast, N'Diaye says by the end of 2020, the region will face income losses of about $200 billion relative to ...

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الشرق الأوسط وآسيا الوسطى يواجهان عاصفة مكتملة في مواجهة جائحة كوفيد-19

لم تسلم أي منطقة من الآثار الاقتصادية الناجمة عن جائحة فيروس كورونا. ويقول جهاد أزعور إن جائحة كوفيد-19 كان لها تأثير بالغ على منطقة الشرق الأوسط وآسيا الوسطى، نظرا لارتفاع مستوى الاعتماد على النفط والانتشار الواسع للعمل في القطاع غير الرسمي في كثير من بلدان المنطقة. ويرأس السيد أزعور "إدارة الشرق الأوسط وآسيا الوسطى" بصندوق النقد الدولي، وهي الإدارة التي أصدرت مؤخرًا تقرير آفاق الاقتصاد الإقليمي والذي يوضح التحديات الهائلة التي يفرضها التصدي لهذه الجائحة. يمكنكم قراءة مدونات أخرى لجهاد أ...

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Jihad Azour: Middle East, Central Asia Face Perfect Storm Amid COVID-19

No region has been spared the economic devastation of the coronavirus pandemic. And with the high level of oil-dependency and informality of many countries in the Middle East and Central Asia, Jihad Azour says the economic impact of COVID-19 has been dramatic. Azour heads the IMF's Middle East and Central Asia Department, which has just published the region's economic outlook that shows formidable challenges in the face of the pandemic. You can read Azour's’s blog and others about the glo...

Epidemiologists Help Steer Economy Through COVID-19

As COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc on economies across the globe, economists are trying to figure out what the best path forward is for countries at different stages of the pandemic. Neil Ferguson and Azra Ghani are both professors of infectious disease epidemiology at Imperial College, London, and renowned for their mathematical modelling of the spread of infectious diseases. In this podcast, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva says macroeconomists and epidemiologists need to work ...

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