The ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ has prevented candidates from other world regions from taking leadership roles (in the IMF and World Bank)

Historically, the World Bank has been led by an American, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been headed by a European. This is the function of a “gentlemen’s agreement” forged by Western powers in the post-war period.

The agreement has prevented candidates from other world regions taking leadership roles.

Failure to adapt to the changing world order could see rising powers going their own way. Such a development would signify the emergence of multipolarity without multilateralism, and create a climate of conflicting interests and values among a diverse group of countries.

To ensure this doesn’t happen, reform of institutions like the World Bank is necessary. Such a process should begin with having a head of the body who doesn’t come from the US and who is selected on merit. That would signal an important departure from the past.

The World Bank needs a transformative leader who can refocus the institution to work with new generation multilateral development banks, development finance institutions, and other state-backed financing instruments in developing countries.

All this is necessary to tackle long-standing infrastructure and other development challenges in the developing world.

Malpass belongs to the old order and is ill-equipped to undertake such a task.