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Okonjo-Iweala eyes World Bank presidency job, again
Nigeria’s former two-time Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has declared that she is ready to take up the job of President of the World Bank, if she is nominated.
It would be recalled that current President, Jim Yong Kim, announced his sudden resignation from the job earlier this month about three years ahead of the end of his tenure.
Okonjo-Iweala, a former senior World Bank official, contested for the position against Kim in 2012 and is considered a front runner in the race.
Okonjo-Iweala, who spoke to Richard Quest of the CNN on Thursday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, said that many people had been asking if she would take the job.
She however declared that she would run but only under the right conditions.
“I know that because I contested the last time in 2012… Many people were asking that question. It is a shareholders’ decision and they have to decide how they want it. Someone has to nominate. If the right person were to nominate, and if the circumstances are right and people feel I can do the job, yes!”
Read also: Nigeria’s economic confidence at a 12-month low, Report says
When asked if she has declared her candidacy, Okonjo-Iweala said: “No, I have not declared my candidacy, you asked a hypothetical question and I answered it fairly. I’m very happy right now, and I just want you to know that I’m enjoying life for a change for a portfolio of what I like.”
According to the website of the World Bank, to choose a president candidates are nominated by the executive directors of the bank. Then a shortlist is compiled and a winner is picked by the bank’s board.
The presidency of the World Bank has exclusively gone to Americans in the entire 73-year history of the bank.
Okonjo-Iweala’s candidature in 2012 was the first time a challenge was mounted to the United States nominee in the institution’s history.
She, outgoing president, Jim Kim and Jose Antonio Ocampo, Columbian finance minister were considered the three top contenders for the job in 2012.
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