The Global Financial Safety Net
International institutions have been developed to provide liquidity to nation states that may struggle to meet their balance of payments commitments in the world economy. From an interdisciplinary perspective, GEGI conducts comparative and policy oriented analyses on the emergence, design, and efficacy of these institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the variety of ‘regional financial arrangements’ that consist of what is often referred to as the ‘global financial safety net.’
Building Back a Better Financial Safety Net
New data shows in 2018, only about half of all IMF member countries had access to IMF resources, and new research using our Global Financial Safety Net Tracker highlights further inequities in these resources – and how they’ve gone under utilized in pandemic economic relief, in favor of bilateral swaps. Many emerging market & developing countries started 2020 desperate for liquidity and in fear of default, and as governments face the challenges of COVID19 and climate change, they will need fiscal space to respond to these simultaneous crises. A new GDP Center explores report what is needed to help:
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Latest News and Publications
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Webinar Summary – Unexpected Revolutionaries: How Central Banks Made and Unmade Economic Orthodoxy
April 11, 2024By Manuel Cruz On Thursday, March 21, the Boston University Global Development Policy Center hosted Manuela Moschella, Professor of Political Science at the University of Bologna, to present the main ideas of her forthcoming book, "Unexpected Revolutionaries: How Central Banks Made... [ More ]
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GDP Center Roundup: IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings, 2024
April 11, 2024By Tim Hirschel-Burns From April 15-19, policymakers, civil society, researchers and more will gather in Washington, D.C. for the 2024 International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank Group Spring Meetings. These official, high-level meetings will set the direction for the institutions, amid a... [ More ]
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Regional Financial Cooperation and Regional Financial Arrangements
February 21, 2024In the aftermath of World War II, the meeting at Bretton Woods led to the creation of multilateral institutions with the purpose of promoting international economic cooperation. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were part of this... [ More ]
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Latin American Reserve Fund: Latin America’s Alternative to the IMF?
January 19, 2024While Latin America’s development bank, Fondo Latinoamericano de Reservas (the Latin American Reserve Fund, or FLAR) went largely unnoticed for much of the 20th century, it has evolved considerably during its more than four decades in operation. It began as... [ More ]
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Webinar Summary – A Crisis of Confidence? Reestablishing the Legitimacy of the International Monetary Fund and the Global Financial Safety Net
December 20, 2023By Tim Hirschel-Burns On Tuesday, December 12th, the Boston University Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center) hosted a webinar titled, “A Crisis of Confidence? Reestablishing the Legitimacy of the International Monetary Fund and the Global Financial Safety Net.” The discussion covered... [ More ]