New World Bank Head Recommended
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WASHINGTON — President Clinton on Saturday recommended investment banker James D. Wolfensohn to be president of the World Bank, an international lending institution whose effectiveness at fighting poverty is under review.
The recommendation will be presented to the bank’s board of directors, which traditionally ratifies the United States’ choice.
The Australian-born Wolfensohn heads his own New York investment firm and is chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington. He is also a cellist and has served as chairman of Carnegie Hall in New York.
The World Bank is the biggest source of loans for poor countries, lending governments more than $20 billion a year. About 178 countries own shares in the bank, but Americans have held its top job since the institution was founded more than 50 years ago.
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