Makhtar Diop has appointed the new Managing Director and Executive Vice President of the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC).
The IFC is an arm of the World Bank Group that advances economic development and improves the lives of people by encouraging growth of the private sector in developing countries.
Announcing his appointment, President of the World Bank, David Malpass said, “Makhtar Diop has deep development and finance experience and a career of energetic leadership and service to developing countries in both public and private sectors.”
“Makhtar’s skills at IFC will help the World Bank Group continue our rapid response to the global crisis and help build a green, resilient, inclusive recovery. We need business climates and thriving businesses that attract investment, create jobs and foster the scaling up of low carbon electricity and transportation, clean water, infrastructure, digital services, and the wide range of development success that are key to our mission of poverty reduction and shared prosperity,” he added.
Mr Diop will be the first African to head the IFC. His appointment takes effect March 1, 2021.
Taking on his new role, Mr Diop’s key responsibilities will be to deepen and energize IFC’s 3.0 strategy of proactively creating markets and mobilizing private capital at a significant scale; deliver on the IFC capital package policy commitments including increased climate and gender investments and support for FCV countries facing fragility, conflict and violence.
The IFC 3.0 strategy seeks to help countries create markets and mobilize private capital, including through broadening upstream engagement by getting involved earlier in the project development cycle to create the conditions needed for private sector solutions and investment opportunities. It also aims to expand IFC’s impact in the poorest and most fragile countries, with a goal to more than triple IFC’s annual own-account investments.
Mr Diop, a Senegalese national and former Minister of Economy and Finance, is currently serving as the World Bank’s Vice President for Infrastructure, where he leads the Bank’s global efforts to build effective infrastructure in developing and emerging markets that supports inclusive and sustainable growth.
Prior to his appointment, Mr Diop served for six years as the World Bank’s Vice President for the Africa Region, where he oversaw a major expansion the Bank’s work in Africa and the delivery of a record-breaking $70 billion in commitments.
A passionate advocate for Africa and sustainable development globally, he led efforts aimed at increasing access to affordable and sustainable energy and promoting an enabling environment for innovation and technology adoption.
Makhtar Diop, a recognized opinion leader in development, has been named one of the 100 most influential Africans in the world. In 2015, he received the prestigious Regents’ Lectureship Award from the University of California, Berkeley. He holds advanced degrees in economics and finance.
