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The US nominee for the post of World Bank President, former MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga, is on a two-day visit to India beginning Thursday to discuss the country’s development priorities and global economic challenges, according to a US Treasury Department statement.
Banga will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
“These discussions will focus on India’s development priorities, the World Bank, and global economic development challenges,’ the statement pointed out.
Also read: World Bank commits $1 billion to India for developing public healthcare infra
Banga will be rounding off a three-week global listening tour that began in Africa and progressed to Europe, Latin America, and Asia.
In India, Banga will also visit the Learnet Institute of Skills, which is a network of vocational institutes established in collaboration with the National Skills Development Corporation, funded in part by the World Bank.
“Banga will learn about the Institute’s program and meet with program participants, staff, alumni, and private sector partners to discuss how it is improving the lives and economic opportunities of participants – particularly young people,” the release said.
Also read: Indian economy better positioned than many countries: RBI bulletin
The Indian government endorsed Banga’s candidacy soon after his nomination was announced. Since then, a diverse coalition of governments have expressed their support for Banga, including Bangladesh, Côte d’Ivoire, Colombia, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Korea, and the United Kingdom, the statement noted.
“If elected to serve, Banga will draw from his experience living and working in emerging markets and his expertise in forging public-private partnerships to mobilise investments and action to confront longstanding challenges,” the statement pointed out.
That includes his efforts at MasterCard to bring 500 million previously unbanked people into the digital economy, as well as its support for 50 million small businesses, it added.
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