The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced the appointment of Jamaica’s finance minister Nigel Clarke as its deputy managing director.
Clarke whose appointment is effective October 31, 2024 takes over from Liberian economist Antoinette Sayeh who is scheduled to step down beginning September 1, 2024.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva made the announcement to the lender’s executive board to tap Clarke to the position.
“Mr. Clarke is an exceptional public servant and policymaker, with proven leadership in institution building and economic crisis management, who has stewarded his country’s economy to a stronger and more sustainable position,” she said.
Clarke has been Jamaica’s Minister of Finance and the Public Service, and a Member of Parliament, since March 2018.
“Since 2016, he has been the IMF’s chief counterpart on successive and historically successful programs for Jamaica, including an Extended Fund Facility, a precautionary Stand-By Arrangement, and most recently a Precautionary Liquidity Line plus Resilience and Sustainability Facility, leaving the country with robust economic fundamentals. Nigel also brings a wealth of experience from a stellar private sector career,” added Georgieva.
Clarke holds a PhD in Numerical Analysis from Oxford University and a Master of Science Degree in Applied Statistics, also from Oxford, while he was a Commonwealth Scholar.
He also holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of the West Indies where he was a Jamaica Independence Scholar.
