Govt appoints new executive directors to World Bank, Asian Development Bank

• While Rajesh Khullar, a Haryana cadre IAS officer of 1988 batch, has been appointed to the World Bank as executive director, Sameer Kumar Khare, additional secretary in the economic affairs department of the finance ministry and a 1989 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, will be the new executive director at Asian Development Bank

New Delhi: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on Monday approved the appointments of new executive directors for the World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB).

While Rajesh Khullar, a Haryana cadre IAS officer of 1988 batch, has been appointed to the World Bank as executive director, Sameer Kumar Khare, additional secretary in the economic affairs department of the finance ministry and a 1989 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, will be the new executive director at Asian Development Bank. Both the appointments are for a period of three years.

The fresh appointments are significant because India is seeking greater resources from the multilateral lending institutions in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic. While Khullar has earlier worked as a joint secretary in the finance ministry, Khare has been overseeing the multilateral division in the finance ministry.

Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank has appointed Takeo Konishi as its new country director for India, succeeding Kenichi Yokoyama who has taken over as director general of Asian Development Bank’s South Asia department.

As head of the country office in New Delhi, Konishi will lead Asian Development Bank operations and policy dialogue with the government and other development partners in India. He will oversee the implementation of Asian Development Bank’s India Country Partnership Strategy, 2018-2022, which focuses on building industrial competitiveness to create more jobs, providing inclusive infrastructure networks and services, and addressing environmental and climate change concerns.

“My priority is to build on ADB’s long-standing and robust partnership with India," said Konishi. “ADB is committed to working closely with the government to support the country in accelerating its inclusive and sustainable economic transformation. We will explore all options to help India in mitigating the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic and assist in its rapid economic recovery process."