The International Fund for Agricultural Development passed its 2013 budget on Thursday — and laid down the law on how much its president can earn.
The IFAD governing council approved a resolution on the president’s emoluments on Feb. 14, the last day of its annual meeting in Rome. It came on the heels of Kanayo Nwanze’s re-election as head of the fund.
Nwanze found himself in the middle of a controversy in 2010 over his salary and benefits package. Italian news reports indicated at the time that the government had planned to cut financing to IFAD’s annual meeting due to his allegedly bloated expenses. IFAD later came out with a statement justifying Nwanze’s compensation.
IFAD’s new rules suggest that:
Nwanze will receive a gross base pay that is similar to that of the Food and Agriculture Organization director-general’s, a representation allowance of at $50,000 per year and an annual housing allowance of €180,000 ($240,000).
He is also entitled to participate in insurance, medical, pension, retirement and other plans as enjoyed by employees of IFAD.
IFAD will pay for his security “provided that [the service is] certified as necessary by the United Nations Department of Safety and Security,” official phone calls, and necessary one-time expenditures related to acquiring, setting up, equipping and refurbishing his residence.
Other highlights of the IFAD annual meeting’s last day:
The 2013 administrative budget, amounting to $153.85 million, got the nod of the governing council.
Nauru, Tuvalu and Vanuatu became the newest members of IFAD.
New policies and criteria for lending took effect. These include increasing the grace period for the repayment of loans with ordinary terms from three years to up to six years “in cases where the borrower’s debt servicing capacity is a concern” and introducing a new loan term, called blend, which combines and replaces two previous loan terms (immediate and hardened). Loans with blend terms have five-year repayment grace periods and 25-year maturities.
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