Meet the first African to head the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation

Economic news for Monday, February 22, 2021

Source: face2faceafrica.com

02/22/2021

Makhtar Diop has been appointed Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private arm of the World Bank. This appointment makes him the first African to lead the post.

The Senegalese national replaces Philippe Le Houerou, who resigned in September 2020 after more than four years as CEO of IFC, according to Reuters. Stephanie von Friedeburg, who stepped in as interim CEO following Le Houerou’s resignation, has been appointed senior vice president of operations at IFC.

World Bank President David Malpass praised Diop’s knowledge in public and private service. He expressed confidence in the Senegalese national’s ability to attract investment in low-carbon energy, transport, clean water, digital services and other infrastructure.

“Makhtar’s skills at IFC will help the World Bank Group continue its rapid response to the global crisis and help build a green, resilient and inclusive recovery,” Malpass said in a statement issued by the IFC. “Makhtar’s skills at IFC will help the World Bank Group continue its rapid response to the global crisis and build a green, resilient and inclusive recovery.”

According to the statement, Diop’s main responsibilities will be to deepen and energize IFC’s 3.0 strategy of proactively building markets and raising private capital on a significant scale; deliver on IFC’s political commitments under the capital package, including increasing investment in climate and gender equality and supporting FCV countries facing fragility, conflict and violence.

In addition, the press release says it will strengthen ties between IFC, the World Bank and MIGA, as the World Bank Group accelerates its efforts to drive good development results in client countries.

Diop is a former Minister of Economy and Finance of Senegal, West Africa. Prior to his appointment, he served as the World Bank’s vice president for infrastructure, overseeing the bank’s work in energy, transport, digital development and other sectors.

He also served six years as the World Bank’s vice president for the Africa region, where he oversaw the delivery of a record $ 70 billion to sub-Saharan Africa to help meet the challenges of the development such as improving access to affordable and sustainable energy; strengthen the economic empowerment of women and youth; and promoting an enabling environment for further innovation and technology adoption, according to the World Bank.

In addition, from 2009 to 2012, Diop served as the World Bank Country Director for Brazil where the World Bank helped finance major infrastructure works and was the Bank’s Country Director for Kenya, Eritrea and Somalia.

Diop has been named one of the 100 most influential Africans in the world by the Africa report. In 2015, he received the prestigious Regents’ Lectureship Award from the University of California at Berkeley.

The Senegalese graduated in economics from the universities of Warwick and Nottingham in England.