World Bank now needs leadership that rises above politics
- The convention that the World Bank be led by an American is about to be perpetuated with the nomination of US treasury official David Malpass as president
- The nomination of Malpass, a World Bank sceptic, raises concerns about the institution’s future
The unwritten convention that the World Bank be led by an American is about to be perpetuated with US President Donald Trump’s nomination of top US Treasury official David Malpass as president.
Malpass will succeed former American health official and academic Jim Yong Kim, who quit during his second term to join a private equity firm amid mixed reviews of his performance.
The bank’s staff opposed his re-election after a contentious reorganisation but he is credited with preserving funds for investment in the poorest economies and shoring up its capital with US$13 billion extra from the United States.
There is no reason to suppose a non-American appointment could not have done at least as well. Along with the convention that the International Monetary Fund should be led by a European, the model is out of touch with the realities of shifts in global power and development lending flows. Policymaking should no longer be in the hands of a narrow elite.
The World Bank has faced growing competition in its mission to ease poverty, especially from China through the Asian Infrastructure Development Bank and the New Development Bank, and through bilateral lending to poor countries.
The bank now needs leadership that rises above politics and focuses on the goal enshrined in the aftermath of the second world war of reducing poverty. It is only to be expected, however, that with the nomination of Malpass, a World Bank sceptic, there is concern about the institution’s future.
