Govt shortens World Bank ED tenure

PM nominates Finance Secretary Naveed Kamran Baloch for World Bank board

ISLAMABAD:

The government has cut the regular four-year tenure of Pakistan’s Executive Director to the World Bank to only 22 months, keeping the door open for a high-profile appointment in Washington before the end of its constitutional term.

Prime Minister Imran Khan had nominated Finance Secretary Naveed Kamran Baloch as Pakistan’s next nominee on the board of World Bank Group. However, instead of granting him a full four-year term, official documents showed that Baloch would get only 22 months and five days.

The government has also intimated the World Bank about its decision to nominate Baloch for only 22 months.

“The government of Pakistan is pleased to nominate Naveed Kamran Baloch, a BS-22 officer of Pakistan Administrative Service, as Executive Director/Alternate Executive Director at the World Bank Group wef 25.12.2020 to 31.10.22,” stated an official correspondence.

Baloch’s name has been selected out of a panel of four candidates including Secretary to Prime Minister Azam Khan, Finance Secretary Naveed Kamran Baloch, Establishment Division Secretary Dr Ijaz Munir and former finance secretary and central bank governor Tariq Bajwa.

According to sources, the economic affairs ministry has proposed a four-year term for the new executive director. Azam Khan was on top of the panel and Tariq Bajwa at the bottom.

There was criticism in the media against the inclusion of at least two names due to their lack of expertise in the field of economics and development. Subsequently, Prime Minister Imran Khan approved the name of Baloch.

However, Baloch may never take the charge of executive director. As per an arrangement among seven countries, the positions of executive director and alternate executive rotate between Pakistan and Algeria after every two years.

Currently, Pakistan’s Shahid Ashraf Tarar is the executive director and Pakistan’s term of two years ends this month. “Baloch will be the alternate executive director,” a senior official of the economic affairs ministry informed The Express Tribune.

The executive director represents seven nations - Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Tunisia, Morocco, Ghana and Algeria - on the World Bank’s board.

The executive director is hired to defend development projects of the seven countries while providing input on their macroeconomic reports, giving opinions on global economic issues and defending quotas and voting rights of their constituency.

Sources said PM Imran would have an opportunity to send a new man in Washington before the end of his term in August 2023. If things remain unchanged, the premier could send his secretary to Washington in October 2022, they added.

A summary for the post of World Bank executive director had been moved with relaxation of rules as secretary to the PM was interested in going to Washington. However, the PM did not relieve Azam Khan, who is now considered the most powerful person in official circles after the exit of Jahangir Khan Tareen.

In its summary, the economic affairs ministry had requested to relax the 2016 policy and rules that made it binding to circulate the post among ministries and departments. The 2016 policy also carries a condition for the candidates to take a written test.

The economic affairs ministry had selected four names without circulating the summary among government ministries and departments.

The post of World Bank executive director is considered prestigious and prized; people who are considered close to the prime minister have, in the past, lobbied to win it.

Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had appointed Shahid Ashraf Tarar as Pakistan’s executive director at the World Bank in 2016 for a period of three years.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2020.

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