The World Bank Head Hunt

Appearing on CNN’s “Quest Means Business,” Uri Dadush discussed Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy for the World Bank’s top job. Dadush was one of 39 ex-World Bank economists and managers to endorse Okonjo-Iweala in an open letter to the bank’s members, citing her “deep experience in international and national issues of economic management.” Dadush acknowledged that the chances of a developing country leader being selected for the World Bank’s presidency are slim, as Americans have always led the organization in the past. But there is a small possibility that Okonjo-Iweala could be selected, especially if she becomes the consensus candidate among the World Bank’s developing country members, he concluded.