International Monetary Fund’s Commitment to Gender Equality in the Workplace Confirmed Through EDGE Certification.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is delighted to announce it has received the ASSESS level of EDGE (Economic Dividends for Gender Equality) Certification. EDGE is the leading business certification for gender equality in the workplace, worldwide. This certification recognizes the IMF’s commitment to and progress in monitoring, benchmarking, and achieving workplace gender equality. Receiving the ASSESS certification means the Fund has already achieved landmark progress in ensuring that diversity and equality are an integral part of its work and values.
The IMF promotes the full participation of women in the workforce globally. This empowers women, and makes sound economic sense. The IMF believes it is equally important that women are fully represented in the institution’s own staffing. Benchmarks for women representation have been in place since 2003, and significant progress has been made with women now accounting for 44 percent of the IMF’s total staff and 28 percent of senior management. The IMF expects to accelerate this progress and has committed to specific actions to achieve this result. The IMF has also gone beyond gender and committed to apply the EDGE methodology to assess its staffing on a regional basis, with emphasis on underrepresented regions. The IMF is the first institution to use the EDGE methodology on both a gender and regional basis. Commitment to the EDGE process will help the Fund validate its progress against an important external benchmark.
“We are honored to be credited for our commitment to diversity and inclusion at the IMF” said IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde. “The diversity of our staff is inherent to who we are, and building inclusion is integral to what we do. We are proud of the progress we have made and we are determined to do more. We will continue to raise the bar on our performance, accountability and transparency in these important areas.”
“The IMF, by becoming EDGE Certified, is sending a powerful message to not only its 189 member countries but also to the rest of the world, that gender equality is a global imperative for economic growth. EDGE congratulates IMF’s Managing Director, Christine Lagarde and the IMF on its commitment to gender equality and its important leadership in this area” says Aniela Unguresan, Co-Founder, EDGE Certified Foundation.
