Janet Yellen calls for strong action to protect IMF and World Bank data integrity
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Thursday called for “strong action” by international financial institutions to protect data integrity and prevent possible abuses amid the World Bank data scandal, Reuters reported, citing BTA .
In a statement to the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Janet Yellen also called on international financial institutions to take steps to improve their domestic systems for reporting irregularities.
The IMF’s board of directors confirmed on Monday that it has full confidence in managing director Kristalina Georgieva, after considering allegations that during her work at the World Bank in 2018, she and other bank employees pressured experts to change data. in a way that would benefit China.
The US Treasury Secretary warned Georgieva that while there was not enough direct evidence to remove it, Washington was taking the allegations seriously. Yellen called for active action to ensure the integrity of IMF data and to protect whistleblowers.
In a statement to the IMF’s International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) and the World Bank’s Development Committee, Janet Yellen warned that the findings of the investigation could hurt both institutions if ignored.
“The results of the investigation into Irregularities in Doing Business can reduce trust in international financial institutions if there is a lack of strong action to increase accountability, protect data integrity and prevent abuse,” Yellen said.
She has been criticized by some members of Congress, who say she has succumbed to pressure from other countries and allowed the IMF’s board to complete its review of the situation too quickly.
“We don’t know what happened, and now we will never really understand what happened, leaving a trail of doubt on future World Bank and IMF research data,” said Sen. James Rish of the Republican Party, who is a member of the Senate. Committee on Foreign Affairs.
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Risch and Democratic Party Chairman Robert Menendez had previously called for full accountability.
The chairwoman of the IMF’s International Monetary and Financial Committee, who is also Sweden’s finance minister, Magdalena Anderson said the IMF board had made a full analysis before expressing its support for Kristalina Georgieva.
“A full analysis was made by the IMF board and the conclusion from this full analysis was that there is unanimous, full support for Kristalina, for the way she does her job as IMF Managing Director,” Anderson told reporters at an IMFC press conference. .
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However, an unnamed source familiar with the subject told Reuters that the saga was far from over, stressing the serious nature of the revelations in the WilmerHale report.
The US Treasury Department will closely monitor the work of the IMF and expects its “requests” to Georgieva to be met, said the source, who requested anonymity.
WilmerHale is working on a separate report on possible manipulation of data from the Doing Business reports in 2018 and 2020. The source said that the US Treasury Department will evaluate the second report when it is distributed.
The World Bank said there was no specific deadline for completing WilmerHale’s report, saying the law firm was tasked with conducting a full analysis and following all instructions.
A World Bank spokesman also noted that the report will be sent to the Human Resources Department and is unlikely to be made public, as staff investigations are confidential.
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