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Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clark arguably recovered Jamaica’s economy from the shock faster than his predecessor, but poverty rates have increased during the recovery period.
“Jamaica is one of the few countries that has recovered from the fiscal crisis caused by the pandemic by consolidating public finances and actually reducing debt,” the IMF said in its 2023 podcast.
Nevertheless, despite the improvement in the macroeconomy, the microeconomy is likely to suffer. The poverty incidence rate rises to 16.7% in 2023, 5.7 percentage points higher than in 2019. This is the government’s Jamaica Economic and Social Survey 2023 The report was released by the Jamaica Planning Institute, which is under the Clarks Treasury Department.
He will take up his new position as deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in October.
Clark leaves office just as Hurricane Beryl passes through, and authorities predict that the new shock could cause the island’s gross domestic product (GDP) to fall for the first time since 2020. The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) expects Jamaica’s economy to shrink by at least 1.5% in 2024, but to grow by as much as 0.5%.
Clark replaces former Liberian Finance Minister Antoinette Sayeh, who will leave office on September 12. Dr. Sidi Jammeh, former head of the International Monetary Fund, called Clark’s appointment one of merit.
“Nigel Clarke, your appointment as vice president of one of the world’s top financial institutions is a well-deserved recognition,” Jammeh said on networking platform Linkedin.
Jammeh also expressed his “commendation” to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva for “helping to select a suitably qualified and experienced candidate from the Global South, based solely on her own merits.”
Roland Price, the World Bank’s director for the Southern Hemisphere, called the appointment a friendly coup.
“Well done, Kristalina. What a huge coup for the IMF! He has made Jamaica proud. He will be a great asset to your team,” Price said on LinkedIn.
Clark told reporters earlier this year that the macroeconomy had lost 10% due to the pandemic, which was equivalent to the biggest drop since the 1970s.
His approach is characterized not by quick or spectacular gains but by steady, incremental improvements that lay the foundation for long-term stability.
“Clark’s commitment to macroeconomic stability and fiscal responsibility was instrumental in Jamaica’s successful completion of its IMF program,” the IMF said in a previous press release.
Another achievement during Clark’s tenure was reducing Jamaica’s debt-to-GDP ratio by one-third, from 110% in 2020 to 72% in 2023. In addition to managing the country’s debt, Clark worked to reform Jamaica’s tax system to make it more efficient and fair. He worked to broaden the tax base and reduce tax evasion, key factors in increasing government revenue without overburdening ordinary Jamaicans.
“We are unique in that we can say that the economic recovery, the job recovery and the debt are lower today than they were before the pandemic,” Clark said on an IMF podcast last year.
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