Gita Gopinath Is First Woman to Join IMF 'Wall Of Former Chief Economists'

India-born Gita Gopinath became the first and second Indian woman to appear on the ‘wall of former economists’ of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The first Indian to receive the honor was Raghuram Rajan, former Chief Economist and Research Director of the IMF between 2003 and 2006.

Gopinath was appointed IMF's Chief Economic Officer in October 2018 and was later promoted to the position of First Deputy Executive Director of the IMF in December last year.

"I violated this practice by joining the wall of the former Chief Economists of the IMF," he tweeted, citing the wall of former economists and his portrait.

Gopinath has worked as the first female economist for a world-renowned lender based in Washington for three years.

Gopinath's research has been published in many top economic journals. Prior to his appointment as IMF Chief Economist, he was Professor John Zwaanstra of International Studies and Economics in the Department of Economics at Harvard University.

Prior to joining the faculty of Harvard University in 2005, he was an assistant professor of economics at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business.