The likelihood that France's finance minister, Christine Lagarde, will be appointed head of the International Monetary Fund is good news for the Arab world, the developing world, and the women of the world who are successful in their professional lives. Lagarde is a successful lawyer, born in 1956, who managed a large legal firm in Chicago for five years and traveled the world as part of her work. Under French President Jacques Chirac, she headed the Foreign Trade Ministry, and was a stand out there in the government of Dominique de Villepin. Those who followed her work and her trips to the Middle East see her personality in terms of seriousness mixed with an understanding of difficult and complex issues, talent in trying to solve them, and warmth, affection and humor on a personal level. Lagarde is an athlete and a former swimming champion and in her former job as minister of external trade, she always found time to swim in the morning for an hour, wherever she was, and before beginning her work. However, she stopped her daily swimming routine while carrying out her difficult and demanding work at the Finance Ministry. There, she has contributed considerably to seeing France avoid the kind of crisis that has struck some European countries as a result of the global financial crisis. In the Arab world, she has many friends in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Lebanon and Egypt. She is aware of Arab issues and the difficulties being experienced by countries that are undergoing uprisings. It is a very sound choice to see her head the IMF, which is dealing with reforms in developing nations, poor countries, and Arab states, which are witnessing popular uprisings in support of political and economic reforms. French President Nicolas Sarkozy did well in supporting her for the post, to succeed France's Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who stepped down after being accused in a sex scandal; moreover, Strauss-Kahn and his wife Anne Sinclair were among the biggest supporters of the Jewish state and he was quoted as saying that they asked every morning, "How can I help Israel?" Certainly, Lagarde's taking up her new duties in Washington will also help see competent women progress in international posts, a number of which have traditionally gone to men. The appointment of Lagarde to head the IMF opens the door to one day selecting, for example, a woman to head the United Nations or another international institution. One can only wish this capable minister success in her job, and if this happens she will have a promising political future in France, to hold the highest positions. Lagarde is the mother of two children and was the first woman to head the Finance Ministry in France. She will also be the first woman in her new post, if she is selected by the IMF board.
