News and Events

Robert B. Zoellick
11th Chief Executive of World Bank

On July 1, 2007, Robert B. Zoellick became the 11th President of the World Bank Group, which works with 185 member countries.

Prior to joining the Bank, Mr. Zoellick served as Vice Chairman, International of the Goldman Sachs Group, Managing Director, and Chairman of Goldman Sachs' Board of International Advisors from 2006-07.

In 2005-06, Mr. Zoellick served as the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. State Department. He was the Department's Chief Operating Officer and policy alternate for the Secretary of State, in addition to having lead policy responsibility in a number of areas.

From 2001 to January 2005, Mr. Zoellick served in the U.S. cabinet as the 13th U.S. Trade Representative. He forged an activist approach to free trade at the global, regional, and bilateral levels, while securing support for open markets with the U.S. Congress and a broad coalition of domestic constituencies. He worked with Ministers from nearly 150 economies to launch the Doha Development Agenda in the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001 and then to complete the framework accord for opening markets in 2004. Zoellick was instrumental in completing the accession of China and Chinese Taipei to the WTO. He also completed or substantially advanced the accessions to the WTO of Cambodia, Saudi Arabia, Viet Nam, Russia, and others.

Zoellick enacted or completed FTAs with Jordan, Chile, Singapore, Morocco, Bahrain, the five countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic, and Australia, quintupling the number of countries with which the U.S. has FTAs. He also launched FTAs later completed with Peru, Colombia, and Panama, and enacted a Basic Trade Agreement with Viet Nam. Zoellick worked closely with the U.S. Congress to pass Trade Promotion Authority, as well as preferential trade arrangements with Africa, the Andean countries, Caribbean states, and all developing economies.

From 1993 to 1997, Mr. Zoellick served as an Executive Vice President of Fannie Mae, the large housing finance corporation, where he supervised the affordable housing business, as well as offices dealing with legal, regulatory, government and industry relations, and international services.

From 1985 to 1993, Mr. Zoellick served with Secretary James A. Baker, III at the Treasury Department (from Deputy Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions Policy to Counselor to the Secretary); State Department (Undersecretary of State for Economic and Agricultural Affairs as well as Counselor of the Department with Undersecretary rank); and briefly Deputy Chief of Staff at the White House and Assistant to the President. Zoellick was the lead U.S. official in the "Two-plus-Four" process of German unification in 1989-90. He was the "Sherpa" to the President for the preparation of the Economic Summits in 1991-92.

Mr. Zoellick graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Swarthmore College in 1975. He earned a J.D. magna cum laude from the Harvard Law School and a MPP from the Kennedy School of Government in 1981. He lived in Hong Kong on a fellowship in 1980.

Zoellick received a number of awards, including: the Knight Commanders Cross from Germany for his work on unification; the Alexander Hamilton and Distinguished Service Awards, the highest honors of the Departments of Treasury and State, respectively; the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service; and a Doctorate of Humane Letters from St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana.

Mr. Zoellick has also served on many non-profit boards, among them the Council on Foreign Relations, the European Institute, the American Council on Germany, the American Institute of Contemporary German Studies, the German Marshall Fund of the U.S., the National Bureau of Asian Research, the Overseas Development Council, and the Advisory Councils of the World Wildlife Fund and the Institute of International Economics.

Mr. Zoellick grew up in Naperville, Illinois.