Africa

The coach of Cameroonian top-flight side Yong Sports Academy of Bamenda, Emmanuel Ndoumbe Bosso is abducted by unidentified gunmen.

A 50km-wide stretch of land in central Mozambique is under water, an aerial survey has shown.

The Kenyan government says more than a million people face food shortages because of the drought.

An estimated 40 million people were living in modern slavery around the world in 2016, and women and girls are disproportionately affected. Credit: Adil Siddiqi/IPS

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
UNITED NATIONS, Mar 19 2019 (IPS)

Modern slavery and human trafficking is one of the fastest growing criminal industries and one of the biggest human rights crises today, United Nations and government officials said.

During an event as part of the annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), government officials, UN human rights experts, and civil society representatives came together to discuss the staggering trends in human trafficking as well as steps forward in the fight against modern slavery.

“Given that slavery was officially abolished in the 19th century and pretty much every country in the world has outlawed it, the trends are really alarming,” Liechtenstein’s Ambassador to the UN Christian Wenaweser told IPS.

“Modern slavery is one of the defining human rights crisis of our time… it is very much an international and transnational phenomenon so we can do this together. We have to tackle it together,” he added.

An estimated 40 million people were living in modern slavery around the world in 2016, and women and girls are disproportionately affected.

According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), 71 percent of victims of modern slavery are female.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) found that out of the detected trafficking victims, 49 percent are women and 23 percent are girls.

The vast majority of victims are trafficked for sexual exploitation, while others are exploited for forced labor and forced marriage.

“The gender dimensions of the practice cannot be ignored. Modern slavery and human trafficking constitutes gender-based violence against women and girls… gender inequality is a both a cause and a consequence of this phenomenon,” said Australia’s Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer.

Panelists also noted that women and girls are especially vulnerable to exploitations in situations of armed conflict.

Nadia Murad, who was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and is UNODC’s Goodwill Ambassador, was among thousands of Yazidi women who were kidnapped by the Islamic State (IS).

Many are forced to be sex slaves, and reports found that IS even uses social media sites such as Facebook to sell Yazidi women as sex slaves.

While Murad was able to escape, an estimated 3,000 Yazidi women and girls are still enslaved.

In Nigeria, Boko Haram has also kidnapped women and girls for the purposes of sexual slavery and forced marriage. A report by the Henry Jackson Society found that Boko Haram members would impregnate women in order to produce the “next generation of fighters.”

“Boko Haram’s fighters do not capture people, their standard procedure was to kill the men and treat the women and children as booty to be bargained over and sold for profit,” said Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten.

“These examples show that trafficking and sexual violence, including sexual slavery, are not just incidental but systematic, institutionalised and strategic,” she added.

However, new international initiatives are underway to fight modern slavery and human trafficking including some by the financial sector.

“That which we walk by, we endorse. I think that’s really critical for all of us, especially in the financial sector itself that while we may not actively participate in trafficking, if we walk by or turn a blind eye…then in a sense we are endorsing it,” said the Commissioner of the Financial Sector Commission against Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Frederick Reynolds.

Ambassador Wenaweser also highlighted the role of the financial sector, stating: “Modern slavery is essentially the economic exploitation of people. You make people into a commodity and you make a lot of money, so the role of the financial institutions is really key.”

Globally, modern slavery generates 150 billion dollars annually.

In fact, one of the major drivers behind sexual trafficking is revenue.

According to the Henry Jackson Society, IS alone generated up to 30 million dollars in 2016 through abductions. As the group struggles to finance its operations due to the decrease in revenues from other sources such as oil sales and taxation, modern slavery may increase.

The Financial Sector Commission on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking hopes to combat this illicit industry.

Also known as the Liechtenstein Initiative, the Commission is a public-private partnership that brings together leaders from the financial sector, civil society, as well as survivors to find innovative ways to end modern slavery including through anti-trafficking compliance and responsible investment.

“We have chosen this because we are a financial center…and we wanted to put the expertise of our financial centre to a positive and constructive use,” Ambassador Wenaweser told IPS.

In September 2019, the initiative will provide a roadmap with actionable steps and concrete tools for the financial sector.

While the financial sector alone cannot solve the complex issue, Reynolds noted that they are a key part of the solution and highlighted crucial actions such as the increased exchange of information between the financial sector and law enforcement.

Patten pointed to the need to address root causes of human trafficking including gender discrimination as well as the importance of a survivor-centred approach.

“[Survivors’] testimonies can inform and strengthen our responses to improve prevention…Women and girls cannot be reduced to currency in the political economy of armed conflict and terrorism. They cannot be bartered, traded, trafficked..because their sexual and reproductive rights are non negotiable,” she said.

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The post Fighting the World’s Largest Criminal Industry: Modern Slavery appeared first on Inter Press Service.

Excerpt:

This is part of a series of features from across the globe on human trafficking. IPS coverage is supported by the Riana Group.

The post Fighting the World’s Largest Criminal Industry: Modern Slavery appeared first on Inter Press Service.

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Climate change and a lack of care for the environment could have devastating consequences for Saint Lucia’s healthy ecosystems and rich biodiversity. Credit: Desmond Brown/IPS

By Alison Kentish
CASTRIES, Mar 18 2019 (IPS)

In 2015, the Caribbean was “the region that could” on the climate change scene. Countries rallied under the ‘1.5 to Stay Alive’ banner, in the face of an existential threat. The now former Sustainable Development Minister of Saint Lucia Dr. James Fletcher emerged as a climate change champion at the time. But now, three years on, the scientist is giving regional climate action a C- in an assessment.
“We had tremendous momentum going into Paris. We had everyone engaged; journalists, civil society, the Caribbean Youth Environment Network and artistes. Now, it’s as if having achieved the Paris agreement, we patted ourselves on our shoulders, said job well done and dropped some of the enthusiasm,” he told IPS.
Excerpts of the interview follow:

Inter Press Service (IPS): What are your thoughts on developments since leading a team of negotiators to the Paris Talks?

Dr. James Fletcher (JF): We have excellent Caribbean negotiators and they continue to ensure that we preserve the things we fought so hard for, such as loss and damage in the agreement and the 1.5.
Last year, the tabling of the special 1.5 report was an important development but we did not seem to have much success in getting the COP to formally recognise the report. The language spoke about ‘noting’ rather than ‘embracing and endorsing’ the recommendations. That was disappointing.
The biggest disappointment, however, is the disengagement of the political apparatus. Going into Paris, we had the engagement of the Caribbean’s political apparatus.

We had the CARICOM chairman, who at the time was Prime Minister of Barbados Freundel Stuart. CARICOM Secretary General Irwin LaRocque was present and so was the former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia Dr. Kenny Anthony, who had responsibility for climate change. We had leaders who were engaged, stayed with us, helped to develop momentum in talking to people like Ban Ki Moon, the then Secretary General of the United Nations and former U.S. President Barack Obama, to ensure that we had political support.
That political engagement has stopped, not just at the level of heads of government, but also at the ministerial level. You don’t see that coalition of Caribbean ministers speaking strongly, with one voice, on climate change anymore and we’ve lost as a result.

 

Dr. James Fletcher (second from left), with Jamaican artistes and the Director General of the OECS Commission Dr. Didacus Jules (far right) celebrate the success of the 1.5 to Stay Alive Campaign during the Paris Climate Talks. Courtesy: Dr. James Fletcher

 

IPS: At the highest levels, how can we improve the climate change discussion?

JF: Unfortunately, we’ve changed the narrative to one just on climate finance. When our ministers, prime ministers and Saint Lucia’s prime minister, who has responsibility for climate change, speak, they speak almost exclusively about mobilising climate finance. Finance is extremely important, but not the only thing that we should be agitating for. If we cannot get industrialised countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to get us closer to 1.5 degrees Celsius, it doesn’t matter what level of climate financing we mobilise, we will not be able to stay ahead. We’ll have catastrophic impacts that no amount of money will help mitigate.

IPS: Do you think the realities of the last few hurricane seasons have made people more aware of the realities of climate change?

JF: Absolutely. Caribbean civil society is clued in to climate change. It’s heartening when I walk around and people tell me, ‘Every time we hear about climate change we think of the work that you guys did,’ and ‘This is serious, what are we going to do?’

Hurricanes Maria and Irma brought home climate change in a very real way to Dominica, the British Virgin Islands and other islands. People understand how dramatic and catastrophic climate change can be.
Fishers tell you that the fish catch is not what it used to be. They have to go much further out now to catch the pelagic [fish] that they were used to catching and are not getting the catches that they used to. In many different ways and sectors, people are experiencing climate change.

IPS: You are assisting Dominica to build climate resilience. How important is a body like the Climate Resilience Execution Agency of Dominica (CREAD)?

JF: The prime minister, in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria made a bold statement that he would make Dominica the first climate-resilient country in the world. CREAD is the vehicle to get that done.
I was asked to stay on to develop the Dominica Climate Resilience and Recovery Plan, which is the overarching plan out of which CREAD’s work plan flows. It’s the blueprint for how Dominica will become climate resilient. It’s based on three pillars; prudent disaster risk management, building resilient systems and effective disaster response and recovery, understanding that Dominica, like other Caribbean islands, will be impacted by hurricanes. With climate change, warmer oceans, warmer temperatures, you will have more severe hurricanes. At some point, every one of us will be in a position where we will have to recover from a hurricane or major storm.

IPS: Caribbean countries are pushing renewable energy programmes. Are you happy with what you are seeing?

JF: I think we could have done more, particularly in Saint Lucia. We should have had a 12 megawatt (MW) wind farm. We dropped the ball and, unfortunately, when the government tried to pick up that ball, the investor died in a tragic plane accident. I’ve been informed that the government, along with the Saint Lucia Electricity Services (LUCELEC), is trying to reactivate those discussions with another partner.

The commissioning of a 3.2 MW solar farm by LUCELEC is a step in the right direction. LUCELEC is hoping to build more utility-scale solar photovoltaic facilities with battery storage. The price of solar is going down and hopefully the price of battery storage will also go down.

The window for geothermal is closing. The cheaper solar and battery storage get, the more unattractive geothermal will become, because geothermal is a risky proposition. ….Dominica has made some serious inroads there, as has St. Vincent and the Grenadines. We’re a bit behind the curve, but hopefully Saint Lucia can get some test wells drilled and see what potential there is.

IPS: Is there any project that you would like to see undertaken?

JF: We planned on replacing 21,000 high pressure sodium street lights that cost the government around 11 million dollars annually, with LED lights…..we had a project with the Caribbean Development bank through blended financing…..we would be able to reduce the spend on electricity from streetlights to five million dollars. That project, for some reason, the government decided not to pursue, to the chagrin of the CDB because they were going to use Saint Lucia as a pilot.

The second one involves energy legislation. We’ve done quite a bit of work as we have an Electricity Supply Act that basically gives LUCELEC a monopoly for the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. That makes it impossible for any independent power producer to come in and get involved in the generation of electricity from renewable sources…… for some reason this has stalled. I really would like to see that legislation come into parliament this year.

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Women are responsible for providing water for their families. Many spend hours travelling to the wells and back home every day, carrying heavy clay pots on their heads. Credit: Irfan Ahmed/IPS

By Monika Weber-Fahr
STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Mar 18 2019 (IPS)

I am drafting this on International Women’s Day – March 8 – with an eye towards World Water Day on March 22. On International Women’s Day we celebrate progress in gender equality. At the same time, we recognize how much remains to be done: how many women remain excluded from decision-making across many professions. Changing this is urgent. Water – clean and accessible – is getting scarcer at an alarming rate. While working to change this, we cannot afford to exclude women.

The water community has made political statements on gender equality, going back to 1992 when the Dublin Statement on Water and Sustainable Development included Principle #3, affirming that “Women play a central part in the provision, management and safeguarding of water.” Was this merely lip service? A developing world woman carry a jug of water on her head remains a stubborn image of women and water. To be sure, this image points to a daily tragedy: the fact that hundreds of millions of people do not have a convenient source of water, and that women and girls spend hours each day collecting water, losing productive time and opportunities, and living in fear for their safety. Like others, Global Water Partnership (GWP) commends the people and organisations that provide infrastructure to bring clean water nearer to communities.

Working to ensure access to safe water and sanitation is a challenge that goes beyond infrastructure. Water needs to be managed. And only inclusive water management, as GWP’s Gender Action Piece points out, has the potential to reduce inequalities, uphold human rights, and improve sustainability. “If segments of the population are excluded, projects are likely to fail. Why? Without considering the diverse needs and practices of a community, it is unlikely that results will be sustainable, and deliver the human development and economic outcomes intended.”

It’s kind of simple, but not often applied: “Nothing about them without them” as we say in the Gender Action Piece. Easy to remember.

The principle applies to all water management. Getting our water resources back in shape is a huge task – rivers and aquifers need attention so they can provide the water we need to grow the crops that will feed our growing population, the water we need for growing cities, the water we need for growing industries. We cannot afford to exclude anyone who uses water or who has a solution: the poor, youth, indigenous peoples – any minority may hold a key to the future of water.

Today’s World Water Day theme is “Leaving no one behind,” a theme designated by our close partners at UN-Water. Today, says UN-Water, “billions of people are still living without safe water – their households, schools, workplaces, farms and factories struggling to survive and thrive. Marginalized groups – women, children, refugees, indigenous peoples, disabled people and many others – are often overlooked, and sometimes face discrimination, as they try to access and manage the safe water they need.”

“Leaving no one behind” is the central promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. That agenda includes the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), one of which – Number 6 – is about water. Part of that goal zeros in on work that has been piloted by GWP and its thousands of member organizations: integrating water resources management across all people and organizations that have a stake in water. The genius of this approach is that it has always been about inclusion.

So how does one practice “integrated” water resources management? Again, kind of simple: to achieve efficient, equitable, and sustainable water management, all stakeholders must have genuine opportunities to actively participate in water management decisions. Only then can decisions be taken that reflect how we all value water – reflecting its social value, its economic value, and its environmental value. In fact, it is interesting to watch how decisions change once we grasp the true value of water – which happens when those sitting at the table represent the full, rich, spectrum of society. GWP sees this whenever our Country Water Partnerships convene stakeholders to debate such decisions.

GWP was recently evaluated for how we do our work. I was glad to see that the evaluation found our network to be of “unique breadth and depth” – providing us, the evaluators said, with singular “legitimacy and reputation.” How? By working as a ‘neutral’ convener of stakeholders, as a convener who speaks “nothing about them without them.”

There are only 12 years to go when all the SDGs should be achieved by 2030. That’s a huge challenge, requiring a massive transformation to the way we run our planet. There are many unsung heroes and heroines whose hard work, grit, and determination create a safe space for people to come together to build common ground for water management decisions, working with everyone, everywhere. Want to join us at the table?

Excerpt:

Monika Weber-Fahr, is Executive Secretary of Global Water Partnership

By Yash Bhandari
WISCONSIN, USA, Mar 18 2019 (IPS)

The U.N.’s World Water day is fast approaching as the state of the world’s consumable water supply remains dismal. Billions of people face at least the very real risk of scarcity, if they’re not facing scarcity already; and about a third of the world’s groundwater systems are in danger of becoming depleted.

With the Trump Administration’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement in 2017, things are looking grimmer still. Several state governors, Republicans and Democrats both, and Puerto Rico have even ignored the federal withdrawal and pledged to uphold the agreement on a state level. So far, seventeen U.S. states have committed to upholding it. You can learn more about the U.S. Climate Alliance here.

Furthermore, in October of 2018, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report claiming that we have only 12 years to keep global temperatures to about 1.5C—if there is even a half a degree increase, it would likely exacerbate floods, droughts, extreme heat, and poverty, all of which will affect millions of people all around the world. The Paris Agreement, in theory, would prevent this from happening.

But Dr. Isaac Hankes—a meteorologist and a Weather Research Analyst at Refinitiv—has a different view. He claims that “the Paris climate agreement is as political as it is scientific, and even if fully embraced will not offset much more than about 0.1°C of warming.

This underscores the importance of personal action by anyone concerned about the effects of warming to make a difference by making energy-saving decisions. Such opportunity now exists in nearly all facets of a home, and actions as simple as installing LED light bulbs or smart power strips could easily supersede any slower-moving government action in offsetting emissions-based warming.”

This points to the necessity for individual action in the face of institutional opposition as well as institutional inefficacy. The problem is that in order for there to be individual action, there must be an impetus; in order for there to be an impetus, there must be, at base, awareness.

A recent survey conducted by Rockay—an eco-conscious manufacturer of running apparel—reveals that awareness is exactly what more than half of Americans lack on the issue of climate change. Conducted online via 3GEM RESEARCH & INSIGHTS, the survey polled 1500 American adults, ranging from ages 18 to 55+. The findings were surprising.

For example, when the responders were asked if global warming will have deleterious effects in their own lifetime, the results were split. 34% answered they did indeed believe that there will be a global-warming-induced impact in their own lifetime; about the same percentage answered the opposite, with 7% claiming that global warming was a “hoax” outright.

Additionally, 32% seemed to be more ambivalent about the issue, answering “kind of,” pointing to an acknowledgment of a fundamental lack of awareness.

This same lack of awareness manifests itself in what is perhaps a more pernicious way. When asked the question, “Are you aware of the Paris Agreement and what it entails?” a whopping 56% of respondents answered “no.” Remember, the Paris Agreement is designed to, in theory, mitigate or even prevent entirely floods and droughts and extreme heat that are set to upend the lives of millions of people worldwide.

Remember too, that politically, the Agreement is a hot topic, creating rifts between politicians, government agencies, and even among nations on how to proceed.

Given this, it’s probably fair to say that climate change, and perhaps even foreign affairs, just isn’t on the mind of most Americans. At least not in any potent sort of way.

In fact, when the respondents were asked about how often they actually spoke about global warming with their friends and family—effectively gauging their level of concern—a tepid 14% said they “often” do. By contrast, 50% responded that they “rarely” or “never” do.

The significance of these findings is potentiated by two assumptions.

The first is that the Paris Agreement alone may not be as effective as would be ideal. The second is that the true solution lies in effectuating a change in the habits of individuals, rather than of entities.

Rockay’s survey indicates that actually succeeding in effectuating this habitual change in individuals is difficult due in part to the fact that these individuals generally have no awareness that there is actually a problem to solve, and thus they have no impetus to change.

To combat this, Rockay urges people to start small, with something easy that has potential to not just combat climate change, but water wastage as well: laundry. You can read more about the why and how here.

The hope is to raise awareness of the facts and trust that the collective consciousness will evolve to reflect them. Because only then would the earth and its inhabitants stand a chance.

Excerpt:

Yash Bhandari is research editor at Rockay, a clothing manufacturer that focuses on the exclusive use of eco-friendly and recyclable materials

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Masood Ahmed is President of the Washington-based Centre for Global Development (CGD) & former Vice President, Poverty Reduction & Economic Management, at the World Bank

By Masood Ahmed
WASHINGTON DC, Mar 18 2019 (IPS)

All incoming World Bank presidents bring a public record of their views about the bank and about development more generally. David Malpass, who is on track to become the bank’s next president, has not been shy in criticizing the role and management of the institution he now plans to lead.

The commentary on his nomination has detailed how his vision of the World Bank’s role and his reservations about multilateral solutions to global development challenges are at odds with the views of the bank’s shareholders and staff and—most importantly—with the needs of its clients, developing countries.

Past statements need not predetermine the direction of the Malpass presidency. Through his initial pronouncements and actions, Mr. Malpass can demonstrate that he is now the leader and guardian of an organization of 189 member countries acting together to achieve shared goals and promote common interests.

A good starting point would be for Mr. Malpass to acknowledge that the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris climate agreement provide a framework for action that most of the bank’s members have endorsed.

Recognizing the value added by multilateral, regional, and national development finance institutions acting as a system, not just in their own narrow interests, would also be an important step.

Here are the seven priorities for the World Bank that Mr. Malpass should consider endorsing in his initial statements and actions:

1. Support Africa’s development and integration into the world economy.

The central development challenge for the next two decades will be to help low-income Africa deal with its demographic, environmental, and developmental challenges. The success or failure of this endeavor will determine the future of the 2.5 billion people who will inhabit the continent by 2050—with major spillovers for every other region in an increasingly interconnected world.

The World Bank is already the largest multilateral financier of Africa’s development, but it can play an even stronger role to facilitate a more coherent approach by Africa’s other large development partners—including the European Union and China. In doing so, it needs to promote and finance country platforms for joined up development support and recognize that much of this development will come from private sector initiative.

2. Target the people left behind.

Development progress is always uneven. Even as countries move up to middle-income status, women, minorities, and disadvantaged regions disproportionately suffer from disease that is simple to prevent; struggle with basic numeracy and literacy, which is simple to teach; and lack human security that is taken for granted elsewhere.

And the transition from below to just above the poverty line is both fraught with challenges and easily reversed. More broadly, two billion people live in countries where sustainable development outcomes are affected by fragility, conflict, and violence, making delivering on the SDGs an intellectual and operational challenge.

Jim Kim—Mr. Malpass’s immediate predecessor—helpfully pushed the bank further into these spaces and Mr. Malpass would do well to confirm the institution’s continued focus on this agenda.

3. Help middle income developing countries make the right development choices.

Emerging markets and middle-income developing countries will increasingly drive global growth. The sustainability of their new infrastructure will define how livable our planet will be for the next century. Their economic success will provide markets for global exports and jobs around the globe.

The policy and investment decisions they make will impact our collective financial and environmental future. It would be a missed opportunity of historic proportions for the World Bank to watch these developments from the sidelines. It has a critical advisory and financing role in middle-income countries—not least as a catalyst for private finance.

Working with these countries also provides the bank with hands-on knowledge of development progress on the ground—knowledge that is essential for the bank to be a credible intellectual interlocuter for its low-income members.

So, it is important for Mr. Malpass to signal that focusing the bank’s financial support on where it has the most impact is not shorthand for pulling back from the vibrant partnership it enjoys with middle-income countries.

4. Mainstream work on global public goods.

Any number of knowledgeable observers, including a high-level group convened by the Center of Global Development (CGD) and an Eminent Persons Group set up by the G-20, have convincingly articulated why the challenge of development cannot be met without addressing problems—and opportunities—that span across countries in an increasingly interconnected world.

Whether it is preparing for the next pandemic; dealing with climate change; managing the ever-increasing flow of refugees; establishing an international tax regime that limits avoidance through tax havens; or coping with the regulatory and ethical challenges posed by big data, AI, and digital technology; action will need to be coordinated across countries and regions.

The Bank for good reasons, the bank has progressively become a major player in a number of these areas, but it still does this as an add-on to its main business, which continues to be organized around country-by-country lending.

Shareholders have not helped by creating a plethora of special facilities and trust funds that the bank manages on their behalf, which sometimes subvert the very priorities that they set for the institution when they meet in its the board to set strategy.

Mr. Malpass has the opportunity to rationalize the bank’s work on global public goods and to make this a core part of the Bank’s regular operations.

5. Be an active player in the debate on development pathways for the 21st century.

Every retrospective evaluation of the World Bank’s value add emphasizes the intellectual contribution it has made to furthering development thought and practice. That role is even more important given the widespread questioning of so much of what was taken as “good practice” in development cooperation.

Many countries are looking to China as the new model for shaping their own economic development strategy, and, no doubt, there is much to learn from China’s extraordinary journey over the past 50 years.

However, it is the World Bank as a global organization that should provide the home for discussing which of those lessons can be usefully emulated by others. Learning from China should be part of the World Bank’s intellectual agenda—not an alternative to it.

6. Engage actively with the other players who finance development.

Regional development banks are sometimes bigger players in their regions, national development banks are an underestimated force, and private foundations are major actors for driving innovation and a results-focus.

Private finance will be the key for making real the aspiration of ‘billions to trillions’ for development finance. Civil society provides ideas and holds the system accountable. The WB has a special role in making the development finance system be more than the sum of its parts. Mr Malpass needs to approach this task with serious commitment and a degree of humility. The results will be well worth the effort.

7. Don’t move around the boxes!

Every incoming president is tempted to reorganize the bank—partly to make it “their bank” and partly out of a genuine desire to make the machine work better. While no organizational structure is without its shortcomings, the cost of reorganization is often grossly underestimated.

The dust is only just beginning to settle on Jim Kim’s badly implemented and long drawn out reorganization; the last thing that an incoming president should do is embark on another round of moving boxes around.

Nor is this the moment for a wholesale changing of the guard at the senior leadership level just to show there is a new sheriff in town. The organization will deliver more and better with a bit of stability and continuity, albeit with the nudges that Mr. Malpass will want to give to align it better with his own vision.

The World Bank’s role as a multilateral development organization cannot be completely insulated from tensions among its major shareholders. Mr. Malpass comes from an administration that sees the World Bank as an instrument in a broader stand-off with China’s growing influence.

Perhaps the greatest challenge facing him will be to demonstrate that he has now moved to lead a multilateral organization that can be a “zone of mutual interest” where, with the cooperation and trust of all shareholders, he can advance global development goals that are in the interest of all.

Excerpt:

Masood Ahmed is President of the Washington-based Centre for Global Development (CGD) & former Vice President, Poverty Reduction & Economic Management, at the World Bank

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