Indian Origin & Padma Shri Awardee Ajay Banga Appointed as World Bank President

Banga, who was raised in India, has a unique perspective on the opportunities and challenges facing developing countries and how the World Bank can deliver on its ambitious agenda to reduce poverty and expand prosperity,

Ajay Banga, a former CEO of Mastercard, has been appointed as the president of the World Bank for a five-year term starting from June 2. The 25-member executive board of the World Bank appointed Banga, an Indian-born finance and development specialist, with the task of revitalizing the organization to confront challenges such as climate change and other worldwide crises on May 3.

US President Joe Biden nominated Banga for the presidency of the World Bank in late February. Banga was the only candidate considered to succeed David Malpass, an economist, and former US Treasury official during the Trump administration, who was stepping down from the position.

Biden said that Banga is uniquely equipped to lead the World Bank at this critical moment in history and has critical experience mobilizing public-private resources to tackle the most urgent challenges of our time, including climate change.

Banga was awarded the Padma Shri in 2016. The Indian Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, expressed confidence that Banga would use his corporate experience in pursuing the World Bank's goals. The World Bank's main goal is to reduce poverty and improve the standard of living in developing countries.

It provides loans, policy advice, technical assistance, and knowledge-sharing services to low and middle-income countries. It aims to achieve its goals by working with governments, civil society organizations, and the private sector. With Banga's extensive experience in the private sector, he is expected to bring a unique perspective to the World Bank's mission.

Source-PTI

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