Opinion: It's time to challenge the status quo in picking the World Bank president
At a time when the legitimacy of the World Bank as a development institution is at stake, countries from around the world are in the process of recruiting the new president of the institution. Any member of the World Bank can put forward a candidate. But since its founding, there has been a gentlemen’s agreement where the United States and its European allies work behind closed doors to ensure a U.S. citizen leads the World Bank, in exchange for the European leadership of the International Monetary Fund.
The White House put forward David Malpass — a long-time critic of multilateralism — as its nominee for the institution’s next president, while Lebanon just put a new name on the table, Ziad Hayek, the only known challenger so far to Trump’s nominee.
Challenge a failed model
The leadership change at the World Bank, traditionally one of the most influential international organizations, takes place against a backdrop of increasing polarization and ongoing economic challenges and growing inequalities continue to take root. We see governments ignoring lessons learnt from the financial crisis, while we are stumbling into the next one. These trends are exacerbated by the effects of climate change which are threatening the livelihoods of the poorest around the globe.... Read the original article on Devex.