Challenges That Await Ajay Banga, The Sole Nominee For World Bank Presidency

The global institution’s confirmation comes after the nomination period for the post closed on Wednesday and no country proposed an alternate candidate for the presidency.

The former Mastercard Inc. chief, Ajay Banga currently serves as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic.

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New Delhi: The sole nominee for the World Bank presidency Ajay Banga awaits a host of challenges.  With the pandemic, came a trail of economic and social crises, an increase in health, stimulus, and social expenditures over the past three years also added to the fiscal burden of several countries.

Countries like Ghana, Sri Lanka and Zambia have defaulted on their debt, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has added to the woes with rise in food and fuel prices. Also, global warming continues to be a threat.

“Amid this polycrisis, the World Bank is more important than ever,” writes Zainab Usman, director of the Africa Programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in Foreign Policy.

Ajay Banga “comes with a track record of successfully managing change in large organisations and has a deep understanding of private capital markets. Both will be needed in his new role,” Masood Ahmed, president of the Centre for Global Development and a former senior official at the World Bank and IMF wrote in Barron’s.

World Bank on Thursday confirmed that Indian American businessman Ajay Banga is the sole nominee for the international lender's presidency, news agency AFP reported.

The global institution’s confirmation comes after the nomination period for the post closed on Wednesday and no country proposed an alternative candidate for the presidency.

According to the report, while no countries apart from the US have announced candidates, Washington-based World Bank rules allow member nations to make nominations during the window that closed on Wednesday afternoon without making them public.

Earlier in February, President Joe Biden announced that the US would be nominating Ajay Banga to lead the World Bank as he is "well equipped" to lead the global institution at "this critical moment in history."

The former Mastercard Inc. chief, Ajay Banga currently serves as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic.

“Over the next few months, you will see the World Bank undergo an important transition. We expect that Ajay Banga – President Biden’s nominee – will be elected President of the World Bank,” US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told lawmakers at a Congressional hearing on Wednesday.

Banga, who has built a long career in the private sector, especially in finance and banking, has highlighted the perspective he could bring to the job from his upbringing and education in India, as well as his commitment to climate science and his belief that poverty and environmental issues are intertwined.

It is to be noted that 63-year-old Ajay Banga spent most of the past month on a global tour to creditor and borrower nations to build support for his nomination. That included stops in China, Kenya, and Ivory Coast, as well as the UK, Belgium, Panama, and his native India.

Banga served as vice chairman at US investment firm General Atlantic LP. Before that, he spent a decade as president and chief executive officer of Mastercard. He also held various positions at Citigroup Inc., including as CEO of the Asia-Pacific region.