Is it just me or is the process for choosing the next World Bank head a little disconcerting?
Did the European Union or anyone else for that matter even have the opportunity to promote their own candidates for the World Bank president before Paul Wolfowitz was approved by the board?
I'm having a severe problem with the lack of transparency and democratic principles used by this organization which, of course, has any number of other problems.
Update [2005-3-31 15:14:16 by Planet B]: Center for American Progress isn't too happy either:
A Bankrupt Process
While there is no chance that the big contributors to the Bank and Fund will overnight yield their right to select leaders, there are steps that can be taken now that might one day lead to real change.
First, the process should immediately be made more transparent. Perhaps coincidentally, this week a Bank spokesman said that the Bank would begin to publish minutes of the executive board's meetings beginning April 1. As the Center for Global Development and others have argued, this new pledge should apply to the meeting about Wolfowitz even if the board meets before the new rules are set to come into effect.
Second, client countries must be given a formal role in helping to pick candidates for leadership at the Bank and Fund, even if the ultimate decision lies in the hands of the executive board dominated by the U.S. and European nations. Ensuring that representatives from client countries be allowed to interview candidates, for example, would mean far fewer surprises and much greater credibility for the new leaders.
Third, the process should be opened to ensure that highly capable leaders from other industrialized and developing countries have the opportunity to compete for the role. This is not to knock the skills or accomplishments of Bank presidents from Robert McNamara to Wolfensohn. But opening the field could serve to better define the kind of leadership the Bank or Fund needs at that moment, as well as expand the talent bank for top-level positions throughout the international financial institutions.
Finally, the Bank and Fund would do well to involve the non-governmental organizations that have protested their policies but played increasingly important roles in global development and poverty efforts. Shutting out these people – including NGOs, economists, and current and former Bank and IMF employees – only increases the sense of alienation that fuels misunderstanding and protests.