WASHINGTON :The World Bank must use"informed risk-taking" to encourage private investors to get more engaged in helping developing countries deal with climate change and leapfrog fossil-fuel energy sources, its new president, Ajay Banga, said on Sunday.
Private sector capital was critical since funds from governments, philanthropies, the World Bank and other multilateral development banks would never suffice to help poor countries adapt to and mitigate climate change, said Banga, a former Mastercard CEO who took office on June 2. "What I think we have to do is ... to find ways in the MDB system to think of a different playbook - to take on the risks that they cannot take on," he said, noting that private companies were bound to deliver returns for shareholders and could not take on the risks involved, but the bank could help.
The Indian-born executive was nominated by the United States for the job precisely because of his previous work in the private sector, and he has pledged to identify barriers for greater investment and find ways to maximize the bank's impact.