The first woman to join the IMF’s “Wall Of Former Chief Economists” is Gita Gopinath

India-born Gita Gopinath became the second Indian and the first woman to appear on the IMF’s “wall of former chief economists” (IMF).

Raghuram Rajan, who served as the IMF’s Chief Economist and Director of Research from 2003 to 2006, was the first Indian to receive the honour.

Gopinath joined the IMF in October 2018 as Chief Economist before being elevated to First Deputy Managing Director in December.

In a tweet that also featured the wall of past chief economists with her picture, she declared, “Breaking the trend, I joined the wall of former Chief Economists of the IMF.”

For three years, Gopinath led the worldwide lender with headquarters in Washington as its first female chief economist.

The study of Gopinath has been included in numerous prestigious economics journals. She served as the John Zwaanstra Professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard University before being named the IMF’s chief economist.

She was an assistant professor of economics at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago before joining the Harvard faculty in 2005.