IMFx: DSAx Debt Sustainability Analysis

Irina Yakadina - I am a senior economist at the Institute for Capacity Development. I joined the Fund as EP in 2002 and since then worked in the African, European, Fiscal Affairs as well as at the Western Hemisphere, African, and European Divisions of the IMF Institute. My recent work involved modeling and macroeconomic forecasting of the euro area and developing an online course on debt sustainability analysis. My research and publications focus on optimal monetary and fiscal policy. I earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona.

Adina Popescu - I am an Economist in Institute for Capacity Development. I worked on assignments in the European Department on both program and surveillance countries. Prior to the IMF, I was an economist for the European Central Bank, working on monetary policy implementation, strategy and research. I hold a PhD in Economics from the London Business School with a thesis optimal government spending. My research topics are in applied and quantitative macroeconomics and Bayesian and frequentist econometrics. I am a national of Romania.

Machiko Narita - I am an Economist at the IMF's Monetary and Capital Markets Department. Prior to that, I worked in the Institute for Capacity Development and the Western Hemisphere Department, serving as a country economist. I obtained my Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 2011, specializing in macroeconomics and financial economics, including consumption, housing, and business cycles. I am a former Japan-IMF Scholarship recipient. I am a national of Japan.

Maria A. Oliva - I am a Senior Economist at the IMF's Monetary and Capital Markets Department. Prior to joining the IMF, I worked at the European Central Bank, the World Economic Forum in Geneva, and in academia in France. My most recent assignments included membership in the Troika on financial issues in Greece and teaching the MTDS framework to debt managers around the world. I obtained my Ph.D. from Universitat Pompeu Fabra, held a postdoctoral position at MIT, and I completed an MSc in Math Finance from Oxford University. I am a national of Spain.

Xavier Debrun - I am a Deputy Division Chief at the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department. I also worked in the IMF's Research Department on the World Economic Outlook. I was a Fellow at Bruegel-Brussels, a leading think tank on European economic issues, and an Associate Professor of Economics at the Graduate Institute in Geneva, where I obtained my PhD in International economics. My research focuses on international policy coordination, the economics of monetary unions, and macro-fiscal issues. I am a national Belgium.

Caroline Van Rijckeghem is an academic and consultant. She obtained her BS in economics from MIT and PhD from University of California, Berkeley. She worked in the IMF Fiscal Affairs Department and Research Deartment. She taught public economics and macroeconomics for emerging markets at Sabanci and Bosphorus Universities, and has written widely on policy issues involving Turkey, including a book on the Turkish financial crisis of 2000-01. Her interests are development economics and financial economics, notably in the area of currency crises and contagion.

Hajime Takizawa is a Senior Economist in the Debt Policy Division of the IMF’s Strategy, Policy and Review Department. He has previously worked as a desk economist on a handful of countries in IMF’s European as well as Middle East and Central Asia Department. He previously worked for the Bank of Japan. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Northwestern University.

Natalia Novikova is an economist in the Strategy and Policy Review Department. Major areas of her current work are assessment of debt sustainability and debt limits policy in Fund supported programs. Prior to joinng the IMF, she was an Economist for Russia and the CIS in the Citigroup, and a lecturer and a research fellow in the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. She also worked for the Central bank of Russia. Her research interests cover the interaction between the monetary policy and term structure of interest rates, modeling of inflation and exchange rates.

Felipe Zanna is a Senior Economist at the IMF's Research Department. He joined the Fund in 2006 and spent several years in the Department of Strategy Policy and Review. Before joining the Fund he worked in the International Finance Division of the Federal Reserve Board. He has a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania. His current research focuses on International Macroeconomics, Development Economics, and Monetary Economics, with a particular focus on low-income countries.

Eric Verreydt I am a former Senior Economist at the IMF's Institute for Capacity Development. Most of my twenty-plus year career at the IMF has been in area departments, as a country economist, resident representative, or mission chief for various low- or middle- income countries in Africa and the Western Hemisphere. I graduated in econometrics from the University of Brussels, where I also taught and conducted applied research on international trade issues. I am a national of Belgium.

Irina Kouropatkina - I have been part of the IMF’s Information Management and Information Technology since 1999 and served as a Program Administrator and a Business Analyst. My role as a Project Manager was focused on bringing experts from across the organization and our colleagues from edx together in order to make this engaging course available to you. I hope that you have a great learning experience and wish you the best of luck!

Matt Di Carlo - I am a Training Administrator at the IMF and served as lead in inputting the assessments for this course. I joined the Fund in 2006 and have spent the last many years focused on distance learning administration. I am an American citizen from Boston, MA and have Masters Degrees in History from Brandeis University and in European Politics from the London School of Economics. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, following baseball, and watching classic movies.

Ghanshyam Kumar - I am Indian national working as a Projects Officer at the IMF. I have worked as a technical advisor in this team. We strive to make sure that you have the best learning experience possible. When not working, I enjoy playing soccer, chess, and making amateur films.

Herbert Lui - I have been a Systems Analyst at the IMF since 1999. I have created several interactive graphs for this course. I hope the graphs will enhance you learning experience. Outside of the office, I enjoy jogging, hiking, and programming.

Jewel Perry - I am an American working at the IMF as a Business Analyst and Program Manager for small and large projects. I have a degree in business management with over 20 years of experience in training and technical documentation. In my free time I like watching movies, cooking, and shopping. I hope you enjoy this learning experience and wish you the best of luck.

Natalia Malysheva - I am a Russian national and have been working at the IMF since 2008. I contributed to the creation of video content for this course and hope you find it fun and useful! In my free time, I enjoy travel, photography, and cycling.

Ranae Jabri - I am a Research Analyst at the IMF's Institute for Capacity Development. I assisted in creating the content of the course and making sure that your exploration of the Debt Sustainability Analysis is exciting and rewarding. Before joining the Fund, I studied economics and mathematics at Columbia University. I am Australian. In my free time, I enjoy snowboarding, hiking, and playing the violin and piano. Enjoy!

Patrick Healy - I am American and began work as a Research Analyst for the Institute’s Online Learning Unit in October of 2013. Prior to starting at the IMF, I studied economics and government at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. I will help to monitor the discussion forums for the course and will do my best to respond to any questions and concerns you, the very first DSAx participants may have. When not working, I enjoy playing tennis and practicing the guitar. Best of luck!

Carl Sandberg - I am a Research Analyst at the IMF's Institute for Capacity Development. I will monitor the discussion forum and help answer your questions for DSAx. Prior to joining the IMF, I studied economics and global affairs at Yale University. Outside work, I am an aspiring street-musician. I also enjoy sports and mountaineering. I hope you will find the course interesting!

Srdjan Beronja - I am a Research Analyst at the IMF's Institute for Capacity Development. Prior to joining the Fund, I worked as a strategy consultant at a multinational bank. I studied economics and international relations at Brown University. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, dancing, watching satirical TV shows, and practicing foreign languages. Enjoy the course!