It’s time to make the World Bank the “World’s Bank.”
Extreme poverty is on the increase for the first time in a generation. Countries affected by fragility and conflict are at the front line. We have 75 months to go before we use what is left of our carbon budget. After that we lose the battle to stay within 1.5°C.
The choices and actions implemented in this decade will have impacts now and for thousands of years to come. Business as usual won’t cut it.
We need extraordinary measures to meet these extraordinary times.
That’s why more than a hundred presidents, celebrities and economists have come together to propose a ten-point-plan to reform the World Bank and make it fit for the 21st century.
1. Establish breakthrough goals to build resilience, tackle climate change, pandemic threats, and address hunger, extreme poverty, fragility and conflict, while driving inclusive and sustainable growth.
2. Dramatically increase responsible lending: Trillions are needed to build resilience to climate change and fight poverty and hunger. Lending to low and middle income countries should at least triple to reflect the rapidly increased demand.
3. Halve loan approval times: Set a breakthrough goal to cut the time from proposal to disbursement in half and commit to a radical level of transparency in sharing data and evaluations.
4. Listen: Understand what leaders and communities in the Global South want from a modernized World Bank and assure low-income countries that funding for fighting extreme poverty remains a priority.
5. Solve the World Bank’s “fiscal cliff” created by front loading spending to address the polycrisis. This could include an exceptional push to replenish IDA and immediately amending the World Bank’s equity to loans ratio.
6. Lead: Set up a new annual summit for International Financial Institutions, Multilateral Development Banks and Regional Banks with the aim of developing a clear division of labor between the institutions, and encouraging other MDBs to maximize lending through more efficient use of their balance sheets.
7. Bring gender equality to leadership at all levels.
8. Bring citizens into decision making: They should have the opportunity to measure impact and hold the bank accountable for results.
9. Restore credibility as a “Knowledge Bank”: Announce a plan to reform the credibility of the World Bank’s research and knowledge products.
10. Bring the World Bank to the world: Establish a group of senior figures from the media, philanthropy, national security, and the advocacy community who advocate inside and out for a bigger better Bank.
Adrian Lovett, CEO, Development Initatives
Aidan Eyakuze, Executive Director, Twaweza East Africa
Alberto Alemanno, Jean Monnet Professor of EU Law
Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Dangote Group
Aloysius Ordu, Director, Africa Growth Initiative, Brookings Institution
Amadou Mahtar Ba, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman, AllAfrica Global Media Inc.
Amat Al-Soswa, Former Minister of Human Rights , Yemen
Anders Wikjman, EarthforAll, Transformational Economics Commission (Former Member of the European Parliament)
Ann Pettifor, Director of Policy Research in Macroeconomics (PRIME)
Anne Jellema, CEO, Hivos
Arancha Gonzalez, Dean, Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po
Ayisha Siddiqa, Campaigner, and Youth Advisor to the Secretary General of the UN, Fridays for Future
Bobby Shriver, Co Founder, ONE, (RED)
Brad Setser, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations
Bright Simons, Founder mPedigree
Camilla Toulman, Former Director, IIED
Carlos Alvarado Quesada, Former President, Costa Rica
Christoph Bals, Policy Director, Germanwatch e.V.
Comfort Ero, CEO, Crisis Group
Connie Hedegaard, EarthforAll Transformational Economics Commission, Former European Commissioner
Daouda Sembene, Former IMF Executive Director
Darren Walker, President, Ford Foundation
David Cameron, Former Prime Minister, UK
David Giampaolo, Chief Executive, Pi Capital
David McNair, Visiting Scholar, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
David McWilliams, Economist
David Miliband, CEO, International Rescue Committee
David Nabarro, Special Envoy on Covid-19 for the World Health Organization
Disha A Ravi, Climate Justice Activist, Fridays for Future
Dr Donald Kaberuka, Special Envoy, African Union’s Peace Fund, Co-Chair, Council on State Fragility, Former President, African Development Bank
Dr Ibrahim Mayaki, Former Prime Minister of Niger and Former CEO of the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD
Dr Jackie Chimhanzi, CEO, Africa Leadership Institute
Dr Nicholas Westcott, Director, Royal African Society
Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Former Deputy President of South Africa
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Former President, Liberia, Co-Chair, Council on State Fragility
Eloise Todd, Executive Director & Co-Founder, Pandemic Action Network
Eric LeCompte, Executive Director, Jubilee USA Network
Ertharin Cousin, Former Executive Director, World Food Programme
Gayle Smith, CEO, The ONE Campaign
Geert Laporte, Director, European Think Tanks Group
Gunilla Carlsson, Former minister for international development cooperation Sweden
Gwen Hines, CEO, Save the Children UK
Gyude Moore, Former Minister of Public Works, Liberia
Hailemariam Desalegn, Former Prime Minister, Ethiopia
Helen Clarkson, CEO, Climate Group
Helene Gayle, President, Spelman College
Henry Obi CBE, Partner, Helios Investment Partners
Hilary Gumbel, Producer, Author and Philanthropist
James Mwangi, Founder of the Climate Action Platform for Africa
Jamie Drummond, Co-Founder ONE.org; Founder, Sharing Strategies
Janez PotoÄnik, EarthforAll Transformational Economics Commision, Co-chair of the UN International Resource Panel
Jayati Ghosh, EarthforAll, Transformational Economics Commission & Professor, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Joe Cerrell, ONE Board Member
Kate Garvey, Co-Founder, Project Everyone
Kate Hampton, CEO, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation
Kieran McLoughlin, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, VentureWave Capital Limited
Lai Yahaya, Senior Policy Advisor, African Energy Transitions
Lakhdar Brahimi, Former Minister for Foriegn Affairs, Algeria
Laurence Haddad, Executive Director of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition
Lily L. Tsai, Director, MIT Governance Lab
Luisa Neubauer, Climate activist, Co-Organizer Fridays for Future, Author
Marcene Mitchell, Senior Vice President for Climate Change, WWF
Maria Livanos Cattaui, Former Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce
Mariana Mazzucato, Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London (UCL) and Founding Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose
Mario Pizzini, Former Director, OECD Development Centre
Mark Malloch Brown, President, Open Society Foundations
Marla Dukharan, Economist
Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland
Mary Sue Milliken, Chef and Trustee of James Beard Foundation
Michael Sheldrick, Co-Founder and Chief Policy, Impact, and Government Affairs Officer, Global Citizen
Mimi Alemayehou, Former Executive Vice President of the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation and United States Executive Director of the African Development Bank
Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director, Pan African Climate Justice Alliance
Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Climate activist, Youth Advocates for Climate Action Philippines
Mo Ibrahim, Founder and Chair, Mo Ibrahim Foundation
Moky Makura, Executive Director, Africa No Filter
Mort Halperin, Former Director for Policy Planning, US State Department
Naila Kabeer, Professor of Gender and Development, London School of Economics
Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, Former Education Minister, France
Nick Mabey, Co-CEO, E3G
Oluseun Onigbinde, Director, BudgIT
Oscar Soria, Campaign Director, Avaaz
Owen Gaffney, Earth for All
Pascal Lamy, Former European Commissioner for Trade and Director General of the World Trade Organisation
Patrick Watt, CEO, Christian Aid
Paul Collier, Professor of Economic and Public Policy, Blavatnik School of Government
Paul Newnham, Executive Director, SDG2 Advocacy Hub / Hungry For Action
Prof Carlos Lopes, Chair , African Climate Foundation Board
Radhika Balakrishnan, Faculty Director of the Center for Women’s Global Leadership, Rutgers University
Robert Muggah, Founder, Igarape Institute, Brazil
Rory Stewart, Former International Development Secretary, UK; CEO, Give Directly
Rt Hon Helen Clark, Former Prime Minister of New Zealand 1999-2008
Saliem Fakir, CEO, Africa Climate Foundation
San Bilal, Senior Executive, ECDPM
Sanjeev Khagram, Dean, Thunderbird School of Global Management
Sara Pantuliano, CEO, ODI
Sharan Burrow, EarthforAll, Transformational Economics Commission (Former General Secretary, International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC))
Stefan Dercon, Professor of Economic Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government
Suneeta Kaimal, CEO, Natural Resource Governance Institute
Tanya Steele CBE, CEO, WWF-UK
Theresia Gouw, Co Founder, Acrew Capital
Tom Arnold, Former CEO, Concern Worldwide
Tom Mitchell, Executive Director, IIED
Trever Manuel, Former Finance Minister, South Africa
Tutu Agyare, Chairman, Volta River Authority
Vanessa Nakate, Climate activist, Author of a Bigger Picture. Organizer Rise up movement and Cofounder of Tard Foundation
Zainab Usman, Director of Africa Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Debbie Shore, Co-Founder, Share Our Strength
Anne Filipic, CEO, Share Our Strength
Aya Chebbi, Founder, Nala Feminist Collective
Dereje Alemeyehu, African Economist
Rt Hon Liam Byrne, Chair of the Global Parliamentary Network on the World Bank and IMF
Adam Tooze, Professor, Colombia University
Jan Peter Balkenende, Former Prime Minister, Netherlands
Tidjane Thiam, Executive Chairman, Freedom Acquisition
Richard Leach, Pastry Chef and Consultant
David Escoffier, CEO, The Liquidity and Sustainability Facility
Sheryl Sandberg, Founder, LeanIn.org
Laurence Tubiana, CEO, European Climate Foundation
