College President Jim Yong Kim's nomination by United States President Barack Obama for the World Bank presidency was met with mixed reactions across campus and among experts. In the days following Friday's announcement, general sentiments ranged from praise for Kim as a leader who will bring a new perspective to the international development organization to concern that he lacks the economic background instrumental to leadership of the Bank.
Most analysts and professors interviewed expect Kim to adapt well to his potential new role at the World Bank.
"I think that the World Bank's mission is to eliminate poverty," economics professor Bruce Sacerdote said. "[Kim's] past experience speaks directly to this. He has a background in how you deliver health care to people in these very poor places."
The Obama administration should be "congratulated" for choosing a candidate who does not come from a traditional political or economic background, Eswar Prasad, former chief of the Financial Studies Division in the International Monetary Fund's research department and former head of the IMF's China Division, said in an email to The Dartmouth.
"This is a bold and intriguing nomination that could kick-start a reorientation of the World Bank, which has floundered in clearly defining its role as a development agency," Prasad, who is currently a trade policy professor at Cornell University, said. "Mr. Kim's credentials as an expert on health and development issues, as well as his leadership experience at a major U.S. university, puts him in a prime position to initiate a much-needed reorientation of the World Bank's role in global development."
Kim's focused background in health, however, may be what limits his full potential as Bank president, according to Uri Dadush, who served as the World Bank's director of international trade and director of economic policy.
While Kim has shown commitment to development demonstrated by his work at Partners in Health and administrative management, he may lack experience in the global sphere, Dadush said.
"From his background and the short time we had discussing, my sense was that he was very narrow and focused on his particular discipline, health, which is an important but small part of what the Bank does," Dadush said. "Compared to the other names mentioned, he did not have a broader exposure to economic policies, how to manage developing countries, things that have to do with the broader financial sector, the development sector, international trade and infrastructure, all of which are critical for the Bank. My impression was that he was going to struggle."
The nomination is another reminder of the U.S. and the European Union's long dominance over global financial institutions like the World Bank and the IMF, even in the face of strong emerging markets, Prasad said. The president of the World Bank has always been American and the president of the IMF has traditionally been European, despite the growing strength of developing countries.
"This nomination and its predetermined success reflects how global governance continues to lag behind shifting economic realities," Prasad said. "In this instance, domestic politics has again trumped true multilateralism."
At the time of the World Bank and IMF's creation in 1944, the U.S. and Europe were chosen to lead the two institutions because they were the biggest aid-providers in the post-war era, Christianne Wohlforth, acting director of the Dickey Center for International Understanding, said in an email to The Dartmouth. As economic development activities over the last 20 years increasingly moved into the developing world, however, there has been growing discontent that the same nations continue to hold positions of power in the international development organizations.
"In recent years, the Bank and IMF have come under harsh criticism for being led by Americans and Europeans, rather than representatives of the regions they serve most," Wohlforth said in the email.
Wohlforth said Kim's nomination is a response to these criticisms. His work as a "development professional" can be seen as the Bank's transition away from traditional banking.
"This signals that the U.S. cares about the development focus of the Bank and has selected someone with an international track record of success on development issues," Wohlforth said.
That Kim was born in South Korea will be positive for his candidacy, Dadush said.
"This is the first non-white face that the Americans have put forward to head up the World Bank, and that's obviously welcomed," he said. "It's going to make the development countries more receptive to him."
Economics professor Douglas Irwin said that Obama's nomination is "refreshing," since Kim can offer a different skill set and "refocus" the organization's interests.
Experts agreed that Kim is likely to be confirmed as the Bank's president next month. While other candidates have been suggested, the number of votes allotted to each country is determined by the country's monetary contribution to the Bank. Jose Antonio Ocampo of Colombia and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria both offer long international careers in economics and development and have experience that some say is better suited to Bank leadership. The U.S.'s hold on the majority of votes, however, will likely ensure Kim's confirmation, Wohlforth said.
"It can be argued that what the World Bank needs now is less a technocratic expert than an inspiring leader, and thus Kim's comparative lack of qualifications in finance might be less significant," she said.
Dadush said that the Obama administration struggled to present a strong candidate for the World Bank opening.
"The U.S. is acknowledging that it should be an open and competitive process, but they still are determined to keep the position," Dadush said. "I think they had a tough time because a lot of people mentioned were lacking one or other characteristic Larry Summers carries a lot of baggage, and [Jeffrey] Sachs was seen as too left-wing. I think they were under a lot of pressure to come up with someone credible."
In his column in The Independent, economics professor David Blanchflower suggested that the Bank may better suit Kim's strong background in international issues than the Dartmouth presidency.
"There [was] always the sense in the Dartmouth community that he was not going to be with us for long as he was headed for a big international job," he said in the column. "I do have a sense that his appointment to the World Bank is a better match given his global interests."
Economics professor Eric Edmonds said the appointment is praiseworthy given Kim's devotion to promoting health and health care in less developed countries.
In his White House announcement Friday morning, Obama spoke about the importance of electing a World Bank leader who understands "the role that development plays in the world."
"It's time for a development professional to lead the world's largest development agency," Obama said.
Although Kim's departure would leave a hole in the College community, his nomination is a nod to Dartmouth's international influence, according to Sacerdote.
"It's clearly a loss for Dartmouth in the local sense but a great step forward in terms of Dartmouth's reputation and influence on the world," Sacerdote said. "This is a huge honor and a huge opportunity for Dartmouth and President Kim."
Analysts at the Center for Global Development could not be reached for comment.
