How do you transform the International Monetary Fund, an institution until recently widely criticised for its lack of legitimacy and representativeness, on the verge of irrelevance, into the international community's premier tool for fighting the global crisis? Simply by throwing the full support of world leaders behind it.

How do we ensure that this unprecedented support and co-ordination at the international level does not evaporate once the crisis is over? By transforming bodies such as the Group of 20 and Group of Eight leading nations into a global economic council (Gleco). This new international body should oversee the proper functioning of the global economy and the stability of the international financial system by providing close political support and strategic guidance to all international financial institutions.

The worst economic crisis of the past 70 years has convinced even the most sceptical critics of the wisdom of having an international “fire brigade” such as the IMF with the tools and expertise to co-ordinate global economic policies and assist countries in financial distress. However, as the recent experience has demonstrated, effective policy co-ordination at the international level is possible only with the direct involvement of the world's leaders.