The new World Bank president Ajay Banga is set to visit Ethiopia this week starting July 31, 2023.
This is the next step of a global tour that is at the center of a mission to write a new playbook for the 78-year-old institution, according to the information from the Bank. “Identifying opportunities to create jobs for young people and women will be a focus of the trip. Banga will visit textile and shoe manufacturing facilities, malt production operations with ties to local farmers, and meet with women small business owners. Also, Banga will convene meetings with CEOs and business leaders
as part of a broader effort to increase private sector investment.”
It is also stated that during his time in Addis Ababa, Banga will meet government officials, including Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. Minister of Finance Ahmed Shide, and Mamo Mihretu, Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia. He will also meet with Moussa Faki Mahamat, the African Union Commission Chairperson, to discuss ways to strengthen partnerships and collaborations between the World Bank and the African Union.
Victoria Kwakwa, World Bank Vice President for Eastern and Southern Africa, and Mohamed Gouled, International Finance Corporation Vice President for Industries, will accompany Banga on the trip.
From Ethiopia, Banga will travel to Nigeria. The African visits follow earlier tour stops in Peru, Jamaica and India.
Ajay Banga began his five-year term as World Bank Group President on June 2, 2023. Ajay Banga most recently served as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Previously, he was President and CEO of Mastercard, a global organization with nearly 24,000 employees. Under his leadership, MasterCard launched the Center for Inclusive Growth, which advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world.
He was Honorary Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, serving as Chairman from 2020-2022. He became an advisor to General Atlantic’s climate-focused fund, BeyondNetZero, at its inception in 2021. Banga served as Co-Chair of the Partnership for Central America, a coalition of private organizations that works to advance economic opportunity across underserved populations in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. He was previously on the Boards of the American Red Cross, Kraft Foods, and Dow Inc.