College President Jim Yong Kim's nomination for the World Bank presidency has continued to receive endorsements from U.S. and foreign officials and from members of the press. Supporters cite Kim's knowledge of health care and medicine and his experience working in developing countries as his strongest assets, while critics remain wary of his inexperience in finance.
Some of Kim's most notable endorsements have come from a number of world leaders, though some developing countries have expressed their desire for a non-American World Bank president. In a March 30 editorial, The New York Times' editorial board wrote that U.S. President Barack Obama's nomination of Kim was an "inspired choice" but suggested that the World Bank board seriously consider Kim's competition for the position Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and former Colombian finance minister Jose Antonio Ocampo.
Critics continue to cite Kim's lack of experience in economic policy and finance. The New York Times editorial board called for a "truly competitive" and "fully transparent" selection process based on merit alone.
"Everyone expects that the U.S.-nominated candidate will be elected," Domenico Lombardi, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington and a former World Bank official, told Bloomberg News. "However, it is also true that the other candidates have resumes and qualifications more in line with the background of previous presidents."
Other publications have criticized what they perceive as American dominance of the selection process. In a March 23 editorial, The Guardian said that while Kim "may well be the best man for the job," the selection process should be subject to a larger number of candidates and greater public scrutiny, rather than defaulting to the American-nominated candidate.
Officials at the international aid agency Oxfam International echoed this concern and urged World Bank officials to avoid simply "rubber-stamp[ing] the U.S. selection," the Associated Press reported.
A group of 39 former World Bank managers, including former Chief Economist Francois Bourguignon, also endorsed Okonjo-Iweala in a letter to the Bank's board, citing her familiarity with the Bank and global finance in general, Bloomberg News reported.
Similarly, The Economist has endorsed Okonjo-Iweala as the best candidate for the presidency, saying that her breadth of experience in government, economics, finance and development are qualifications that Ocampo and Kim do not share. Okonjo-Iweala has also been endorsed by the Financial Times, the African Union, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and Mohamed El-Erian, CEO and co-CIO of Pacific Investment Management Company, a global investment management firm and one of the world's largest bond investors.
Kim's notable endorsements include those from Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi, Haitian President Michel Martelly, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, South Korean Foreign Minister Bahk Jae-wan and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.
Kagame said that Kim is a "true friend of Africa" and "a leader who knows what it takes to address poverty," the Associated Press reported. Azumi, expressing the Japanese government's support for Kim's bid, called Kim a "highly competent individual" and an "appropriate candidate" for the World Bank presidency, according to Bloomberg News.
The Carribean Journal reported that Martelly also endorsed Kim's nomination. The Haitian government said that Partners in Health has had a long-standing presence in Haiti, and improvements in citizens' well-being and prosperity can be attributed to Kim's leadership, the Carribean Journal reported.
Support for Kim's nomination has been especially high among officials in South Korea, Kim's birthplace. Bahk enthusiastically endorsed Kim's candidacy, according to the Korea JoongAng Daily. He cited Kim's knowledge of health, medicine and anthropology as evidence of his qualification for the position and pointed to Kim's "on-the-ground experience" in developing countries, the Korea JoongAng Daily reported.
Lee echoed Bahk's support for Kim, according to The Korea Times.
"I think the right person has been nominated at a critical time when the World Bank needs change," Lee told The Korea Times.
As could be expected, Kim's nomination has been well-received by politicians in the United States as well as overseas. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said that Kim was an "inspired and outstanding choice" in a March 23 White House press release. In a letter to the World Bank's Board of Governors, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner '83 said that Kim's extensive understanding of the World Bank's role in the international arena makes him the best candidate for the position, Bloomberg News reported.
Geithner said that Kim is "committed to pursuing an agenda for the Bank that supports all the necessary components of development," according to Bloomberg News.
Jeffery Sachs, a development economist at Columbia University, had campaigned for the position prior to Obama's announcement of Kim's nomination and has since endorsed Kim's candidacy, the Financial Times reported.
"I congratulate the administration for nominating a world-class development leader for this position," Sachs said. "I support his nomination 100 percent."
The Huffington Post's Terra Lawson-Remer, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and assistant professor at the New School applauded the unconventionality of Kim's resume, citing his "cutting edge" approach to economic development and his "leadership in promoting equity" as a "breath of fresh air" that will guide the World Bank in the right direction.
In an article for the Financial Times, Robin Harding and Joe Leahy argued that Kim's strong development credentials should garner enough support to "overcome complaints about the job always going to a U.S. citizen."
The World Bank is expected to choose its next president on April 16.
