Korean-American physician Jim Yong Kim, who has been selected as new President of the World Bank, has said he will seek a new alignment of the body with a rapidly changing world.
"As President, I will seek a new alignment of the World Bank Group with a rapidly changing world," Kim said in a statement after the World Bank announced that he has been selected to replace Robert Zoellick on July 1.
"Together, with partners old and new, we will foster an institution that responds effectively to the needs of its diverse clients and donors; delivers more powerful results to support sustained growth ... amplifies the voices of developing countries ...," he said.
The World Bank picked Seoul-born Kim over Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
Kim is currently president of Dartmouth College. The US national, Kim is a co-founder of Partners in Health (PIH) and a former director of the Department of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organization (WHO).
Kim, 52, will take over at the beginning of July, after the current president, Robert B Zoellick, steps down at the end of his five-year term.
"I am delighted to succeed Robert Zoellick, who has served with excellence and distinction during the last five years, and I am grateful to the Bank’s member countries for the broad support I have received,” he said.
Kim said his discussions with the Board and member countries point to a global consensus around the importance of inclusive growth.
"We are closer than ever to achieving the mission inscribed at the entrance of the World Bank - Our Dream is a World Free of Poverty," he said.
