New broom at the World Bank..

I was delighted to hear about support Ngozi Okonjo-Iwaela as a candidate for the presidency of the World Bank. Somebody should. She is brilliant. Judging from her name, I thought she was a Youruba, but after checking I learned she is Ibo. Definitely not from the north and, checking further, brilliant with her Harvard and MIT degrees.

I remain skeptical of Nigerians, however, as they has an exceedingly bad reputation here in the USA for activities decidedly criminal.

Their financial scams are legendary. They migrate freely and have acquired the enmity of many other African populations by their competitive commercial disposition. They move in and take over. When I was last in Johannesburg, I listened to a lady curio seller complain of how the Nigerians have moved into the city and threatened small enterprises like her own with their aggressive sales and marketing. Ironically, she was not even South African, but Kenyan.

The eventual appointment does not displease me. I view Jim Yong Kim as a transitional appointment from a traditional US post to one open to people from other countries. Born in South Korea, Kim has a stunning record, albeit not in the area of development economics.

My call is that Kim will do a good job. He is a leader and will undoubtedly get all sorts of good (and bad) advice and will use his experience with people to forge ahead on the correct path.

We all know the Bank is somewhat of a sham anyway as it has poured billions into the coffers of Third World leaders and their minions while allowing so called beneficiaries to do without, or with precious little. I would like to see Kim shake up the Bank a bit, although I have no illusions about his, or anyone else's getting rid of Third World corruption.