JUDY WOODRUFF: The fiscal and
monetary policies implemented
by the U.S. government in the

past year, along with the
falling numbers of new COVID
cases, should pave the way for

a robust U.S. economic recovery,
although real challenges
remain. That was the general

conclusion of an annual report
released today by the International
Monetary Fund. It projects

that the U.S. economy will grow
roughly 7 percent this year,
as federal stimulus programs

fuel consumer spending. But that
growth raises the risk of inflation.
The report also emphasizes

that the pandemic itself remains
the greatest threat to any
nation and urges the U.S. to

help other countries cope with
the health crisis. Kristalina
Georgieva is managing director

of the International Monetary
Fund and joins me now. Director
Georgieva, it's so good to

have you with us again. I
want to ask you about those
economic projections, but let's

start with COVID and the effect it has had
on the world. You and the IMF are calling

this week for countries
that can afford to do so to
particularly help the countries on

the African continent, sub-Saharan Africa,
with more doses of the COVID vaccine. Why

is this important, and do you
expect to get the help you need?
KRISTALINA GEORGIEVA, Managing

Director, International Monetary Fund: It
is very important for everyone everywhere.

Why? Because what we are facing
in the world is a two-track
vaccination path that leads

to two-track economic recovery.
In the United States, vaccinations
have exceeded 50 percent.

In many other advanced economies, they are
going up in the territory that allows the

economies to fully reopen, whereas,
in many developing countries,
and especially in low-income

countries, vaccination rates are extremely
low. In Africa, less than 1 percent of the

adult population is fully vaccinated, and
yet we see the new Delta variant causing a

third, very rapidly going-up
wave of infections in Africa.
The impact of this is twofold.

One, it is holding the recovery
of the world economy back
and, of course, harming people

tremendously. We calculate that,
if we accelerate vaccinations,
if we vaccinate the world to

40 percent this year, 60 percent
by the middle of next year,
we will gain $9 trillion in

output between now and 2025.
And 40 percent of this gain
will be for advanced economies

because of this rapid recovery
of the world. And, two,
because, when we don't vaccinate

people, we leave patches as
fertile ground for new mutations
that are ricocheting back

in the developed world. JUDY
WOODRUFF: Right. And what I want
to ask, is the United States,

as you know, has already pledged
to give 500 million doses or
more to, what, over 100 of

the world's poorest countries.
How much more are you asking
the U.S. to do? KRISTALINA

GEORGIEVA: So far, we have
gotten about a billion doses
pledged to increase vaccinations

in developing countries. But
we are still - - we are still
significantly short. We need

11 billion doses for the world.
And we need, next year, to
get to an excess production

of vaccines, so we vaccinate
those who need it, and we
secure boosters if that becomes

necessary. So, to answer your
question, U.S. is doing a very
good job leading the world

with offering additional
vaccines, but we need more. JUDY
WOODRUFF: And it's a subject,

I know, that so many people
know is important and could
pursue. But I also want to talk

to you about the economy
and the bounce-back from the
pandemic. As I reported a moment

ago, you, the IMF today,
projecting the U.S. economy will
grow 7 percent, a remarkable

rate of growth, this year. What
does that mean for the world?
We know the entire global

economy took a big hit from this pandemic.
What does this -- this improvement here in

the United States going to mean
for the whole world? KRISTALINA
GEORGIEVA: Let me first

recognize the two foundations
for this strong growth, the
stimulus that was put in place

to inject money in the hands of
people and support businesses
and the accelerated vaccination

push that the U.S. has been
pursuing over the last months.
They both lead to this remarkable

recovery that will deliver the
highest growth rate in the United
States since 1984, a generation

ago. What does it mean for the rest of the
world? Primarily good news, because higher

growth in the United States
means that the United States
is going to be demanding more

goods from other nations and
is, in that way, exporting some
of this growth momentum. This

is why our message is very
simple, vaccine policy this year,
next year is economic policy.

Let's vaccinate the whole world.
JUDY WOODRUFF: So, in a few
words, Director Georgieva, what

should Americans, what should
the United States be doing in
the year, the next year, a couple

of years to come to see the
world move forward in total,
together, in a positive direction?

KRISTALINA GEORGIEVA: Well,
first and foremost, the United
States ought to continue to build

its competitiveness and the
vibrancy of its economy, because,
as the largest economy in

the world, when the U.S.
does well, that is good for
everybody. And, in this sense, we

very warmly welcome the two plans that are
now under consideration, the Jobs and the

Families plans. They are going
to inject more productivity,
higher labor market participation

in the U.S. that would boost between 2022
and 2024 growth in U.S. by 5.25 percentage

points. And it will also take care of the
people in the United States that have been

hit the hardest by this pandemic.
We mean Black and Hispanic
communities. So, that action

in U.S. is beneficial for
the world directly and also
indirectly, as a leadership as to

how tax policy and spending
policy can lead to a more
vibrant and fair economy in the

future. JUDY WOODRUFF: A
number of policies of this
administration. Kristalina Georgieva,

the managing director of the
International Monetary Fund,
thank you very much. KRISTALINA

GEORGIEVA: Thank you.