Pretoria - Christine Lagarde, the Former French Finance Minister, today begins her first day as the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Last Tuesday, the Fund announced that Lagarde had been appointed as the new MD by consensus of the 24-member executive board representing the Fund's 187 member countries.
It had been a two-horse race between Lagarde and Governor of the Bank of Mexico, Agustin Carstens, after the post opened up in May due to the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.
Lagarde, 55 is the first woman named for the top job since the inception of the fund in 1944.
Lagarde takes over at the helm after Greece approved unpopular austerity measures that the Fund as well as the European Union said is a must for aid.
"Should you entrust me with the challenging task of MD, I would strive, over the next five years, to build a Fund that would be adapted to a changing world; responsive, ready and able to meet all challenges, both foreseeable and unforeseeable; cooperative, listening and coordinating effectively with all stakeholders, and continuously striving to build consensus; legitimate and even-handed, to reflect a changing world," Legarde told the board of the fund at her interview.
Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan congratulated Lagarde - who, prior to being appointed as finance minister, has served as France's Minister for Foreign Trade -- on her appointment.
