WASHINGTON, September 27, 2016 – World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim today issued the following statement upon being appointed by the Bank’s Board of Executive Directors to a second five-year term, beginning July 1, 2017:
“I am humbled to have the honor of serving a second term as the head of this great institution. I am grateful to our Board for giving me the opportunity to continue building on our successes.
We have accomplished so much over the past four years, thanks to the brilliance and hard work of the Bank’s dedicated staff and management. The starting point for my work when I joined the Bank in 2012 was the setting of two ambitious new goals for the institution: to end extreme poverty by 2030, and to promote shared prosperity - boosting the income growth of the bottom 40 percent of the population in every developing country. In order to deliver on these goals, the Bank had to accelerate, become bolder and more agile, and reposition itself. We did this so that we could increase support for countries and deliver better results more quickly. I believe we are well on the way to achieving these important aims.
The challenges going forward remain large, with climate change, forced displacement, and pandemics threatening the gains we have made to improve the lives of billions. We will need to work even more closely with partners, and continue to find new and innovative ways to leverage scarce development resources effectively.
I believe that the World Bank Group is the greatest instrument for tackling global poverty in the world, with unmatched global knowledge and financial tools. I look forward to working with our professional and diverse staff, our partners, and our member countries to build a more inclusive world, free of poverty.”
