Address by Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, at the 2024 Annual Meetings - As Prepared for Delivery

Jul 19, 2026

Address delivered by Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, to the Board of Governors at the Joint Annual Discussion during the 2024 Annual Meetings. The speech reviews the institution’s founding amid World War II and evolving toward global development, while addressing today’s intertwined challenges of poverty, climate change, conflict, and pandemics. It outlines a mandate to evolve the World Bank into a faster, simpler, and more impactful institution, highlighting measurable milestones in approvals, process streamlining, unified country frameworks, and strengthened partnerships for development co-financing and knowledge.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

Address by Ajay Banga

Background and evolving mandate

Turning reconstruction into development focus

Institutional evolution: faster and simpler

Making the World Bank more impact-oriented

Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized October 25, 2024 Address by AJAY BANGA, President of the World Bank, to the Board of Governors of the World Bank, at the Joint Annual Discussion 2024 Annual Meetings Address by Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, to the Board of Governors of the World Bank, at the Joint Annual Discussion As Prepared for Delivery It is a privilege to stand before you at the convergence of two important moments for the World Bank Group: • A moment to celebrate what we have achieved in 80 years and reflect on the lessons we have learned; • And, a moment to memorialize a year of change, hard work and progress; and prepare for the next generation of challenges. The World Bank was born in a moment of global upheaval. Established in 1944 during the Bretton Woods Conference, it emerged as a response to the widespread devastation caused by World War II. Its original purpose, as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, was focused squarely on helping war-torn nations rebuild. However, even in those early discussions, a spirited debate emerged: should the World Bank focus solely on reconstruction, or could it play a broader role in fostering global development? Since then, the world's needs have continued to evolve, and the World Bank has evolved with them. Again, we find ourselves at a similar crossroads, where reconstruction is at the forefront due to wars in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The lessons from the past have uniquely equipped us to rebuild from today's conflicts. While reconstruction is essential, our focus has increasingly turned toward development. This is where the World Bank's heart lies: helping nations emerge from less fortunate circumstances to enable people to reach their full potential. Today, we face a world of unparalleled complexity—poverty, climate change, conflict, and pandemics are intertwined. The modern requirements of reconstruction and development call for an institution that is faster, simpler, and more impactful; capable of addressing the challenges of our time at an unprecedented scale. It is a call that was echoed by our shareholders and clients when I joined 16 months ago—a mandate to work with the dedicated people of the Bank to engineer the institution’s evolution. Together, we have embarked on this journey to build a better bank and bring that vision to life. We have achieved meaningful improvements across the institution and progressed toward that promise. I am encouraged that we are moving in the right direction, marked by measurable milestones—streamlined operations, a more impact-oriented institution, and increased lending capacity. First, we are faster. Because development delayed, is development denied. By streamlining our processes, we can move from planning to action more quickly, reducing the time it takes to deliver for the countries we serve. • We’ve reduced project approval from an average of 19 months to 16. Our goal is to get to 12 months by June 2025. • This is manifesting in reality. Using a platform approach, we approved a set of health projects with similar characteristics in five African countries, each in under 100 days, some as fast as 30. In the Pacific region, we approved a correspondent banking support project with seven countries in 10 months. Second, we are simpler. Because process should never overtake substance. Simplifying our processes helps us work more efficiently and makes it easier for clients, especially those with limited capacity, to access our services. • We are delivering a unified Country Partnership Framework and have appointed 21 joint country heads representing the entire group—IBRD, IDA, MIGA, and IFC. While it's still early, we see a shift and new level of collaboration among our management and staff. The initial feedback from countries has been encouraging—so we are in the process of expanding to 20 more countries by early n

FAQs

Why does the speech compare today’s moment to past crossroads for the World Bank?

It links the Bank’s original purpose after World War II to present-day conflicts, arguing that past lessons equip the institution to rebuild while increasingly focusing on development.

What are the main goals for transforming the World Bank’s operations?

The address emphasizes making the institution faster, simpler, and more impact-oriented, with changes aimed at reducing delivery timelines, streamlining processes, and prioritizing measurable outcomes.

How does the speech describe progress toward faster and simpler service delivery?

It highlights reduced project approval times, faster approvals using a platform approach, a unified Country Partnership Framework, and unification of back-office functions to deliver services more efficiently.

Jul 19, 2026

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