World Bank reforms are urgent but thus far, the process has been too focused on the demands of wealthy shareholders rather than borrowing countries, and that has led to “political fragmentation,” according to a pair of development experts.
Efforts to reform the World Bank — largely driven by major shareholder priorities to push the bank to lend more and focus more on climate — have received considerable attention. But there wasn’t much concrete progress at the recent Spring Meetings.
The reforms “cannot be seen as the new Washington consensus imposed from the global north,” said Claire Healy, a senior associate at E3G, a think tank focused on climate change. More work needs to be done to get all countries on board, she added during a Devex event.