New Delhi: The US nominee for World Bank President Ajay Banga will arrive in India on Thursday capping a three-week global listening tour that began in Africa before progressing to Europe, Latin America and Asia. During his two-day visit to New Delhi from March 23 to 24, Banga will Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar.
"While in India, Banga will meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the minister of finance Nirmala Sitharaman and the Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar. These discussions will focus on India's development priorities, the World Bank, and global economic development challenges," US Treasury Department said in a statement.
Banga will visit Learnet Institute of Skills
Additionally, Banga will visit the Learnet Institute of Skills, which is a network of vocational institutes established in collaboration with the National Skills Development Corporation, funded in part by the World Bank. He will learn about the Institute's programme and meet with programme participants, staff, alumni, and private sector partners to discuss how it is improving the lives and economic opportunities of participants - particularly young people.
“India's government endorsed Banga's candidacy soon after his nomination was announced. Since then, a diverse coalition of governments have expressed their support for Banga, including Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Korea, and the United Kingdom,” it said.
Banga met with stakeholders, business leaders during global listening tour
As per the US Treasury Department, during his global listening tour, Banga has met with senior government officials, stakeholders, business leaders, entrepreneurs, and civil society. Along the way, he has built continuous momentum for his candidacy, gaining the support of advocates, academics, development experts, executives, Nobel laureates, and former government officials, it said.
“If elected to serve, Banga will draw from his experience living and working in emerging markets and his expertise in forging public-private partnerships to mobilise investments and action to confront long standing challenges,” it added. That includes his efforts at Mastercard to successfully bring 500 million previously unbanked people into the digital economy, as well as its support for 50 million small businesses.
Back in February, US President Joe Biden nominated former Mastercard CEO Banga as the head of World Bank, days after Donald Trump appointed David Malpass resigned from the position. Banga was chosen by the US government because of his vast experience in addressing issues like climate change on a global scale.
David Malpass' five-year term was expected to end in April 2024. David Malpass's early resignation from the 189-nation strong organisation which majorly works for poverty reduction was viewed as a chance for the USA to nominate a leader who can guide the organisation for the development of less-wealthy nations. The US government has made addressing the effects of climate change its top priority and the financial institution would work for the same purpose as the new leader takes charge.
Who is Ajay Banga?
Ajay Banga is currently the vice chairman of General Atlantic. In addition to holding several positions at Mastercard and serving on the boards of the American Red Cross, Kraft Foods, and Dow Corp., he has more than 30 years of commercial expertise.
Importantly, he is the first Indian-born candidate to be nominated for the position of president of the World Bank. According to Joe Biden, Ajay Banga is the only person currently qualified to run the World Bank, who voiced his trust in his ability to lead. Ajay has significant expertise in combining public and private resources to address the most pressing issues, according to Biden.
(With PTI inputs)
