Ali Hashim, Governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has assumed the role of Chair of the Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank for the year 2024

He assumed the role for the upcoming year on Thursday and the announcement was made during the plenary session of the ongoing Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank held at Marrakech, Morocco.

Taking to Twitter following the announcement, Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid congratulated Governor Hashim and noted that this mirrors the trust and confidence the international community has in the Maldives.

FM Shahid went on to express his heartfelt gratitude to all the friendly countries who supported Maldives in this election.

FM Shahid praised Hashim for being a person of the highest integrity and expressed confidence that he will undoubtedly contribute to the work of both institutions at a critical time.

Representing the Maldives, Governor Hashim was unanimously proposed as the Chair by Executive Directors of the Asia-Pacific region of the IMF and World Bank following a consultative process.

IMF’s Chair of the Boards of Governors and the World Bank Group are rotated among five main regions of both institutions and for 2024, the Chair was selected from the Asia Pacific region.

This is the first time the archipelago nation will serve in a leadership position in either the IMF or the World Bank Group.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has dubbed the selection of Governor Hashim to the position to reflect the trust and faith the international community has placed in the foreign policy principles of the Maldivian government.

The Maldivian government expressed belief that Governor Hashim is exceptionally qualified to chair the IMF and World Bank Group Boards of Governors in the upcoming year.

The Maldives also remains confident in his ability to effectively discharge his duties at a critical stage when important discussions on the future of the two institutions are taking place.

Since joining the IMF and the World Bank in 1978, the Maldives has received assistance from both international financial institutions in several areas, including enhancing the effectiveness of public financial management and policy making, improving monetary and financial frameworks, boosting resilience to climate change and disasters as well as enhancing employment and economic opportunities for its people.