United States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday congratulated India-born Ajay Banga on his election as President of the World Bank.
Indian-American businessman Banga was on Wednesday designated as World Bank president for a term of five years. He is the first Indian-origin nominee to the World Bank president role.
The former MasterCard CEO was nominated by US President Joe Biden, who said Banga will be a “transformational leader”, who will bring expertise, experience, and innovation to the position of World Bank president, following his confirmation as the new head of the international financial institution.
"Ajay Banga will be a transformative leader, bringing expertise, experience, and innovation to the position of World Bank President. And together with World Bank leadership and shareholders, he will help steer the institution as it evolves and expands to address global challenges that directly affect its core mission of poverty reduction — including climate change," Biden said.
"Ajay will also be integral in bringing together the public and private sectors, alongside philanthropies, to usher in the fundamental changes in development finance that this moment requires," said the president congratulating his nominee for the next President of the World Bank on his resounding approval by the Bank’s Board of Governors.
US Vice President Kamala Harris also congratulated Ajay Banga in a tweet. Harris has worked with Banga in Central America.
“Congratulations to Ajay Banga on his election as President of the World Bank. Ajay has been an incredible partner in our work in Central America, helping to deliver hope and opportunity on the ground. I look forward to our continued work together.”
After Banga was nominated he spent the last couple of months travelling to different countries and meeting with their governments from the World Bank's diverse shareholder base and stakeholders from both the private and philanthropic sectors.