UNITED STATES
The United States President, Donald Trump is backing a long-time critic of the World Bank to lead it.
Sources said senior United States Department of Treasury official, David Malpass (pictured) would seek to reduce the bank’s international role, a large part of which involves lending money to the world’s poorest nations.
White House officials said Mr Malpass, a long-time Republican, would be a “pro-growth reformer”.
President Trump praised Mr Malpass as being a “strong advocate for accountability at the World Bank for a long time”.
The president, who frequently criticises multilateral institutions, said he expected Mr Malpass to ensure that the bank’s dollars were “spent effectively and wisely, serve American interests and defend American values”.
Mr Malpass, a Trump loyalist, was a senior economic adviser to the president during his 2016 election campaign and has served as the Treasury Department’s Under-Secretary for International Affairs since August 2017.
He has criticised the World Bank, along with other institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, for being “intrusive” and “entrenched”.
Mr Malpass has also pushed the bank to reduce its lending to China, which he says is too wealthy to deserve such aid.
The US, the World Bank’s largest shareholder and a major source of its funding, has traditionally held sway over the selection process for president.
An American has led the institution since its beginnings in the 1940s, when it was created to help rebuild Europe in the aftermath of World War II.
There has been increased pressure to diversify the bank’s leadership, reflecting the economic rise of other countries in recent decades. However, it is not clear if other countries will propose alternatives to challenge Mr Malpass.
The World Bank has 189 members and is accepting names until 14 March.
Washington, 8 February, 2019
