On July 2, 2007 Robert B. Zoellick became the Bank's 11th President. Office of the President Already as a nominee to the World Bank post, Mr. Zoellick made trips to Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Latin America, meeting with Bank's stakeholders, to listen and learn how the Bank can play a more effective role in promoting global development.
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His first meeting with CSOs was in Ghana on June 7. The meeting, set up by the US Embassy in Accra and held at the local office of CARE, was small and informal, with the heads of five organizations -- CARE, Catholic Relief Services, Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Third World Network (TWN), and Action Aid -- including a well known regional CSO leader, Yao Graham (TWN). Discussions were wide ranging: budget support, pro-poor trade policies, the Bank's work in Ghana, and governance issues at the Bank. Mr. Zoellick also had a meeting on Monday June 25 with Washington-based US CSOs. The meeting was organized by US Treasury and was held at their offices. Some 20 CSO representatives from the following organizations participated: Transparency International, World Wildlife Fund, InterAction, World Resources Institute, German Marshall Fund, Oxfam America, Action Aid, Bank Information Center, Mott Foundation, and World Learning. The meeting lasted two hours and was characterized by a free flowing exchange of views about a number of issues: poverty reduction, governance and anti-corruption, MDGs, climate change, IDA, gender, and CSO capacity-building. Mr. Zoellick encouraged each CSO representatives to speak and then responded to a number of questions. He said that one of his first priorities would be to work with Bank staff and the Board to get past the leadership crisis and re-build morale. He talked about what a priority the IDA replenishment process is, and while he reiterated that Africa is clearly the regional priority, the Bank can't forget that 60% of the poor live in middle income countries which will also continue to require the Bank's assistance. Finally, he reiterated how important it is for the Bank to engage and consult with civil society. Mr. Zoellick has also been having informal meetings with individual CSOs throughout his first two months in office. On July 30 Robert Zoellick, embarks on his first official trip, to East Asia. He will visit: Australia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Japan. The trip complements a visit that Mr. Zoellick made in June to Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Latin America, as a presidential nominee. During his visit to Cambodia and Vietnam, Mr. Zoellick will hold talks with CSOs and will travel to rural areas to see various development projects supported by the Bank. Last updated: July 27, 2007 top Dialogue with Civil Society - main page |
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