The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has selected Bulgarian national Kristalina Georgieva as IMF managing-director and chair of the Executive Board for a five-year term starting on October 1.

Georgieva, who succeeds Christine Lagarde, is the first person from an emerging market economy to lead the IMF since its inception in 1944, reported Emirates news agency Wam.

The managing director is the chief of the IMF’s operating staff and chair of the Executive Board. The managing director is assisted by four deputy managing directors in the operation of the Fund, which serves its membership through about 2,700 staff.

Before joining the Fund, Georgieva was CEO of the World Bank from January 2017 to September 2019, during which time she also served as interim president of the World Bank Group for three months.

Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 1953, Georgieva holds a PhD in Economic Science and a MA in Political Economy and Sociology from the University of National and World Economy, Sofia, where she was an associate professor between 1977 and 1993.

Speaking after her selection, Georgieva said: "I am deeply honoured to have been selected as managing director of the IMF and grateful for the trust that the fund's global membership and the executive board have placed in me.

"The IMF is a unique institution with a great history and a world-class staff. I come as a firm believer in its mandate to help ensure the stability of the global economic and financial system through international cooperation. Indeed, in my view, the Fund's role has never been more important."