Washington: Closing the gender gap in every aspect of economy is the most efficient way to reduce inequalities, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said today.

“The most efficient way to reduce the inequalities would be to actually close the gender gap between men and women, and that is a no-brainer,” Lagarde said at a news conference at the start of the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World bank.

“Whether it is access to the labor market, whether it is access to finance, whether it is the gender gap in terms of compensation, that would achieve a lot in order to reduce inequalities,” she said.

The IMF boss said the solution applied to all countries irrespective of their economic situation.

Asked whether taxing the rich would help solve the problem, Lagarde said she disagreed.

“I disagree with that point Â… that taxing the rich would be the most efficient way to reduce inequalities,” she said.

“A study by the Fiscal Affairs Department demonstrated that, given the significant drop in average tax rate in most advanced countries, increasing the higher brackets would not prejudice growth,” she added.

Lagarde said while reducing excessive inequalities would support growth in some countries, there is only one definite way to spur growth across the world.

“I would suggest that focusing on the women in all economies in the world would significantly reduce inequalities,” Lagarde said.