Change Of Guard: World Bank to select new president

The World Bank says nominations will be accepted through March 23.

WASHINGTON: The World Bank announced on Friday that it will select a new president to succeed Robert Zoellick by April 20. Zoellick had announced on Wednesday that he would step down at the end of his five-year term on June 30. The World Bank said nominations will be accepted through March 23; candidates can come from any of the Bank’s 187 member countries. A shortlist of up to three candidates will be selected for interviews by the Bank’s executive directors. But even as the Bank sets out what it says will be “a merit-based and transparent process” to choose its 12th head, it appears all but certain to select an American. Under a tacit agreement between European powers and the United States dating to 1945, all 11 World Bank presidents have been Americans and all International Monetary Fund managing directors have come from Europe.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 19^th, 2012.