David Malpass to step down early as World Bank President, why was he called a climate denier?

David Malpass, who was appointed by former US President Donald Trump as World Bank President, said Wednesday that he would leave his post by the end of June. Malpass’s tenure as the World Bank President has less than a year remaining. The term for the top post is of five years. While Malpass did not give out any specific reason for his leaving the post, he did mention that he took the decision “after a good deal of thought.” “I’ve decided to pursue new challenges,” he said in his statement.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed her gratitude to Malpass. In a statement, she said that the world has benefited from his “strong support for Ukraine”, “his vital work to assist the Afghan people”, and his “commitment to helping low-income countries achieve debt sustainability through debt reduction.”

Over who will be the next World Bank president, Yellen said that the replacement for Malpass will be done  through a “transparent, merit-based and swift nomination process.” Malpass joined the post as the World Bank chief in April 2019. Prior to that, he served as a top official for international affairs at US Treasury in the Trump administration. 

He also took the helm as the chief economist for the defunct investment bank Bear Stearns. World Bank head is chosen by the United States and now US President Joe Biden’s administration has the onus to take further calls as to who will lead the global organisation which helps with funding developing economies every year. 

David Malpass has often been called a climate denier by his critics. Malpass found himself surrounded by controversy when he dodged a question during a panel talk on climate finance. At the time, Malpass was asked whether he believed manmade burning of fossil fuels is rapidly and dangerously warming the planet. While dodging the question, he said, “I don’t even know. I’m not a scientist.”

However, under pressure from the outrage by climate advocates, he was later quick to redeem himself when he said it was indeed climate change that is causing the greenhouse emissions. 

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