[Global] World Bank chief to step down early

On February 15, World Bank chief David Malpass announced that he would step down nearly a year early, Yahoo reports.

Mr Malpass was appointed to the role in 2019 under Donald Trump’s presidency. He had previously served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for international affairs.

During his tenure, the World Bank managed global crises such as the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and an international economic slowdown.

In a statement from the bank after informing its board of his decision, Mr Malpass said, "After a good deal of thought, I've decided to pursue new challenges.

"This is an opportunity for a smooth leadership transition as the Bank Group works to meet increasing global challenges." 

In recent months there have reportedly been calls for the chief to resign or be removed.

Climate activists called for Mr Malpass to be ousted for what they said was an inadequate approach to the climate crisis. Their calls became louder after his appearance at a New York Times-organised conference in September 2022.

Asked to respond to a claim by former US vice president Al Gore that he was a climate denier, Mr Malpass reportedly refused several times to say if he believed man-made emissions were warming the planet. He responded, "I'm not a scientist."

He subsequently said he had no plans to stand down and clarified his position, acknowledging that climate-warming emissions were coming from man-made sources, including fossil fuels.

The White House reportedly rebuked Mr Malpass. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the expectation was for the bank to be a global leader on climate crisis response.

Quick response

In a statement on Wednesday, the bank said that it has "responded quickly" in the face of recent global challenges, particularly by mobilising a record $440 billion to tackle climate change, the pandemic and other issues.

"Under (Malpass's) leadership, the Bank Group more than doubled its climate finance to developing countries, reaching a record $32 billion last year," the statement said.

In a note to staff - seen and reported by AFP - Mr Malpass said, "Developing countries around the world are facing unprecedented crises and I'm proud that the Bank Group has continued to respond with speed, scale, innovation, and impact."

His term would have originally ended in 2024.

In a statement, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the world has benefitted from Mr Malpass’s strong support for Ukraine, his work to assist the Afghan people and his commitment to helping low-income countries achieve debt sustainability through debt reduction.

She reportedly added that the US looks forward to a swift nomination process by the World Bank's board for the organisation's next president.

"We will put forward a candidate to lead the World Bank and build on the Bank's longstanding work... and who will carry forward the vital work we are undertaking to evolve the multilateral development banks," she said.

Traditionally the head of the World Bank has been an American, while the leader of the other primary international lender in Washington, the International Monetary Fund, tends to be European.

Before assuming his role as World Bank president, Mr Malpass repeatedly criticised the big development lenders for being wasteful and ineffective and called for reforms.

Source: Yahoo

(Quotes via original reporting)

On February 15, World Bank chief David Malpass announced that he would step down nearly a year early, Yahoo reports.

Mr Malpass was appointed to the role in 2019 under Donald Trump’s presidency. He had previously served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for international affairs.

During his tenure, the World Bank managed global crises such as the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and an international economic slowdown.

In a statement from the bank after informing its board of his decision, Mr Malpass said, "After a good deal of thought, I've decided to pursue new challenges.

"This is an opportunity for a smooth leadership transition as the Bank Group works to meet increasing global challenges." 

In recent months there have reportedly been calls for the chief to resign or be removed.

Climate activists called for Mr Malpass to be ousted for what they said was an inadequate approach to the climate crisis. Their calls became louder after his appearance at a New York Times-organised conference in September 2022.

Asked to respond to a claim by former US vice president Al Gore that he was a climate denier, Mr Malpass reportedly refused several times to say if he believed man-made emissions were warming the planet. He responded, "I'm not a scientist."

He subsequently said he had no plans to stand down and clarified his position, acknowledging that climate-warming emissions were coming from man-made sources, including fossil fuels.

The White House reportedly rebuked Mr Malpass. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the expectation was for the bank to be a global leader on climate crisis response.

Quick response

In a statement on Wednesday, the bank said that it has "responded quickly" in the face of recent global challenges, particularly by mobilising a record $440 billion to tackle climate change, the pandemic and other issues.

"Under (Malpass's) leadership, the Bank Group more than doubled its climate finance to developing countries, reaching a record $32 billion last year," the statement said.

In a note to staff - seen and reported by AFP - Mr Malpass said, "Developing countries around the world are facing unprecedented crises and I'm proud that the Bank Group has continued to respond with speed, scale, innovation, and impact."

His term would have originally ended in 2024.

In a statement, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the world has benefitted from Mr Malpass’s strong support for Ukraine, his work to assist the Afghan people and his commitment to helping low-income countries achieve debt sustainability through debt reduction.

She reportedly added that the US looks forward to a swift nomination process by the World Bank's board for the organisation's next president.

"We will put forward a candidate to lead the World Bank and build on the Bank's longstanding work... and who will carry forward the vital work we are undertaking to evolve the multilateral development banks," she said.

Traditionally the head of the World Bank has been an American, while the leader of the other primary international lender in Washington, the International Monetary Fund, tends to be European.

Before assuming his role as World Bank president, Mr Malpass repeatedly criticised the big development lenders for being wasteful and ineffective and called for reforms.

Source: Yahoo

(Quotes via original reporting)