World Bank post not decided on merit: Nigerian candidate

The Nigerian candidate to head the World Bank said on Monday that the appointment was not being decided on merit and that the US nominee would win, but added that she had helped bring change to the process."You know this thing is not really being decided on merit," Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, also a former World Bank managing director, told reporters at a briefing on the country's 2012 budget.

"It is voting with political weight and shares and therefore the United States will get it."

The World Bank's directors meet on Monday to decide who will be the powerful institution's next chief, with all expectations that the United States will maintain its unbroken lock on the position.

The next head of the bank will succeed Robert Zoellick, who is stepping down at the end of his term in June.

Okonjo-Iweala said that despite the apparent failure of developing nations to have a nominee appointed to the post, her candidacy had helped inject change into the process.

The US nominee, Korean-American physician Jim Yong Kim, faced a challenge for the first time for 66 years from two strong developing country candidates.

The other candidate, former Colombian finance minister Jose Antonio Ocampo, dropped out on Friday complaining that the selection process was all political.

"It will never ever be the same again," Okonjo-Iweala said.

"So we have won a big victory. Who gets to run the World Bank -- we have shown we can contest this thing and Africa can produce people capable of running the entire architecture."

Under a tacit agreement since the Bretton Woods institutions were founded nearly 70 years ago, the United States has always put an American at the helm of the World Bank and Europe has picked a European to lead the International Monetary Fund.

Okonjo-Iweala, a respected Harvard-educated economist, was widely seen as a strong candidate to challenge the status quo.

She took over as Nigeria's finance minister in August, her second time in the role, after serving as World Bank managing director from 2007 to 2011.

The 57-year-old previously served as Nigeria's finance minister between 2003 and 2006 and was lauded for having negotiated the cancellation of 18 billion dollars of Nigeria's debt. She also served briefly as foreign minister.

Since taking over in August, she has pushed for various reforms in Africa's most populous nation and biggest oil producer, which has long been held back by deeply rooted corruption.

The reform push has had mixed results, with the most high-profile initiative -- an attempt to end fuel subsidies widely seen as riddled with corruption and a drain on the country's budget -- turning into a political fiasco.

Nigeria's bid to end subsidies all at once and without prior notice at the start of the year caused petrol prices to instantly more than double and led to a week of strikes and street protests that virtually shut the country down.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan was forced to compromise and partially reinstate the subsidies.

The series of events led to criticism of Okonjo-Iweala from average Nigerians, most of whom live on less than $2 per day and who see fuel subsidies as the only benefit from the nation's oil wealth.

Other areas the minister has sought to improve include the country's neglected agricultural sector and its dysfunctional ports, seen as a brake on investment.

http://www.timeslive.co.za/africa/2012/04/16/world-bank-post-not-decided-on-merit-nigerian-candidate

It's good that she withdrew before being embarrased. God will punish US and their talk of meritocracy. Hypocrites.

afam4eva: It's good that she withdrew before being embarrased. God will punish US and their talk of meritocracy. Hypocrites.

Exactly! God will continue to expose Americans and their shady tactics. Everyday is for the thief but one day is for the owner. American economy continues to sink anyway so it is only a matter of time. What NOI stated is the same thing the Latin American world bank contestant said too. He said it is not about merit and hence decided to withdraw. God is watching. I wish African nations will stop lending money from them (world bank) but our leaders don't care and will gladly sell us for a bowl of pottage to the west.

Na today?


Give us the IMF job, Europe shrieks

Posted by: CNN Anchor, Richard Quest

The Europeans are in a tricky position. They desperately want to keep the top job at the IMF, but they can’t be seen to be nakedly saying “it’s ours by right.”

So leaders from European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to finance ministers from Austria, Sweden and Denmark, (in fact just about anyone from Europe who has opened their mouth on the subject), are turning linguistic cartwheels to promote a European solution.


These are the arguments:

The standard formula runs something like this:

1. Of course, the best person should get the job.

2. Europe has the best person … give us the job.

There is a variation introduced by Angela Merkel of Germany which goes this way:

1. Of course over the mid term the job should be open to everyone BUT

2. At the moment, with Europe in such a mess it should go to a European. Give us the job.

The newest argument to be invented is that it should be Europe’s because … wait for it….

1. European Union countries collectively are the biggest shareholders of the fund

2. We pay the most. Give us the job.

The Europeans are desperate not to give up this role – and frankly for its own political reasons, nor is the United States. Because under the existing arrangements if Europe loses the IMF the U.S. might lose their automatic right to the World Bank presidency.

The quickest way to make sure there is no change in the status quo is for Europe speedily to agree a consensus candidate. Get them out into the open before the other countries even have time to hold a meeting. This is one reason why the name of French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde (pictured above) is being promoted so heavily. The hope is by getting her name out into the open, they can get American agreement before other voting blocks even realize what’s happened. Get the Americans on board and it’s a done deal.

If the candidate is Christine Lagarde then the contest is probably just about over. She was an intern to a top U.S. congressman. She is a former chairman of the law firm Baker & McKenzie. And she has been minister for trade and industry and is now finance minister of France. Christine Lagarde has the experience, diplomacy, stature and reputation that would make her just about unbeatable.

Provided of course … the Europeans get moving , fast.

https://www.nairaland.com/671557/zoning-international-level#8357567


http://business.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/19/give-us-the-imf-job-europe-shrieks/?hpt=C2

sore loser

Why can't Africa boycott these international banks(IMF and world bank), and have their own continental bank. This proposed bank would require member nations to deposit their reserves in the bank. So that loans can be given to member nations that needs it. This way Africa can take control of their development.