Samantha Power in the running to head WB
Whether or not Sri Lanka will be able to receive the much-awaited bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by March as President Ranil Wickremesinghe expressed hopes this week, securing further financing from other global lending organisations such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank is going to be more challenging in the future.
These donor agencies have already indicated they will consider fresh financing facilities for Sri Lanka once the IMF Board approval is granted and the country is on an
Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme.
Recent developments at the World Bank management with the announcement of the early retirement of its current President David Malpass and potential candidates--one in particular--Samantha Power, the current Chief of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is something government insiders in Colombo are closely watching, given her active role in Sri Lankan affairs in the past.
Outgoing World Bank President David Malpass, who was nominated by former US President Donald Trump, announced he was leaving this week, one year prior to the end of his term. Earlier, he came under some criticism over his response to climate change.
According to an unwritten rule among Europeans and Americans, the Europeans choose the Head of the IMF, while the US picks the Chair of the World Bank. Other than Ms Power, USAID ex-Chief Raj Shah is also one of the potential candidates for the post.
Ms. Power was in Colombo last September as Head of USAID to oversee programmes undertaken by the organisation to meet food security concerns, and she sat with a group of farmers in a Colombo suburb to hear their grievances, amid media publicity.