*WASHINGTON DC: *Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and US President DonaldTrump’s daughter and adviser Ivanka are among possible US candidates toreplace outgoing World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, The Financial Timesreported on Friday.
Kim abruptly announced Monday he was cutting short his tenure as the bank’spresident more than three years before his second term was due to end.
In addition to Trump and Haley, who stepped down as US Ambassador to theUnited Nations last month, other names being floated include TreasuryUndersecretary for International Affairs David Malpass and Mark Green, headof the US Agency for International Development, the newspaper reported.
Ivanka Trump in 2017 was the driving force behind a $1 billion,Saudi-supported World Bank fund to promote entrepreneurship by women.
The Treasury Department told *AFP* on Friday that it had no comment inpotential candidates.
The department has received a “significant number of recommendations,” aspokesperson said.
“We are beginning the internal review process for a US nominee. We lookforward to working with the governors to select a new leader.”
Read Top Stories
Under an unwritten agreement, the United States, which is the bank’slargest shareholder, has always chosen its leader since the institution wasfounded following World War II.
But the success of a US candidate no longer appears completely assured.
Kim was the first American nominee to face a contested election for theWorld Bank presidency in 2012 and the bank’s board has said its selectionprocess will be “open, merit-based and transparent,” implying non-UScandidates would not be ruled out.
The World Bank Board said Thursday it would start accepting nominations fora new leader early next month and name a replacement for Kim by mid-April.- APP/AFP
