US representative to the World Bank to step down

9 February 2007

Jennifer Dorn has been serving as Acting Executive Director.

Ms. Dorn will assume a new position as President and CEO of the National Academy of Public Administration on March 1.

Her departure will leave both the Executive Director and Alternate Executive Director positions vacant.

No announcement has been made on her replacement.

What is an Executive Director?

Executive Directors oversee the day-to-day operations of the World Bank, approving all lending operations, policies and strategies, and institutional budgets and audits. They also hold discussions on operations evaluations, development trends, and strategic directions for the Bank. The Executive Directors also formally appoint (although the U.S. government selects and nominates) the President of the World Bank, who serves as chair of the Board of Directors.

The Board of Directors is made up of 24 Executive Directors, representing all member countries (184 IBRD members; 165 IDA) of the World Bank. The five largest shareholders are entitled to appoint their own representatives: United States, Germany, France, Japan and the United Kingdom. Subsequent decisions have provided for three further "single constituency" Board chairs: the Peoples Republic of China, the Russian Federation, and Saudi Arabia. Sixteen Board chairs are divided among the remaining member governments.

Find out more on BIC's World Bank webpage