News from Asia and the Pacific

Students to Write a Story on IMF for Int’l School Network

August 8, 2019, Tokyo – How does the IMF cope with challenges amid a lot of criticism? How does it ensure sustainability and exclusivity in its policy recommendations? A group of college and high school students today visited the IMF’s regional office in Tokyo and posed tough questions on its role, as they prepare a story on their findings on the IMF for their newsletter and video clip.

Visitors were an interview crew from the Yokohama-based International School Network – three economics students from Keio University and two high school students with two supervisors. Mr. Chikahisa Sum, Director of the IMF Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (OAP), met with the crew and answered a few questions about the role of the IMF and the significance of the OAP in Japan. The students also asked about the organization’s efforts to increase the number of Japanese staff, and his goals as OAP director.

Asked about the challenges of criticism, Mr. Sumi responded that the IMF learned lessons from the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s when the IMF’s lending programs with conditionality were considered as “a western invasion”. “Over the years we have developed more options to help financially struggling countries. Now we’re capable of offering better options,” he said.

The network is a student-led platform to increase public awareness on global issues. It visits embassies, institutes, schools and individuals to interview for its website and newsletter.

“It was a great honor to meet with Mr. Sumi,” said Madoka Nishina of Keio University, the leader of the network, after the visit. “His explanation was very clear and his analogy was very easy to understand. We’ve learnt many things about the IMF.” The crew will write an article for its newsletter and post a video clip about the visit on its website.