지난 4월 16일 김용 다트머스대(Dartmouth College) 총장이 차기 세계은행(World Bank) 총재로 선출된 것과 관련한 이숙종 EAI 원장의 기고문이 싱크탱크세계평의회(Council of Councils)의 Expert Roundup에 게재되었습니다. 이숙종 원장은 기고문을 통해 세계 의료 및 보건 문제를 위해 노력해온 김 총재의 리더십 하에서 세계은행이 복합적으로 변모해가는 개발문제에 더욱 효과적으로 대응할 수 있을 것으로 전망하였습니다. 싱크탱크세계평의회(Council of Councils)는 주요 국제사회 현안에 대한 세계 전문가들의 의견을 취합하여 매월 한 차례 Expert Roundup으로 발행하고 있으며 4월에는 "Does Kim Signal World Bank Changes?"를 주제로 김용 차기 총재의 선출과 향후 세계은행 개혁 전망에 관한 전문가들의 견해를 취합하여 발표하였습니다. 미국 외교관계평의회(Council on Foreign Relations: CFR)는 현재 국제사회가 직면한 복합적인 도전들에 대한 해법을 찾고자 국제적으로 권위있는 20개 정책연구기관들을 모아 지난 3월 싱크탱크세계평의회를 발족하였으며, EAI는 싱크탱크세계평의회 창립기관 중 하나로 선정되어 다른 연구기관들과 함께 협력하고 있습니다.

 

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이숙종 EAI 원장 싱크탱크세계평의회 기고문

 

The selection of Dr. Jim Yong Kim as the twelfth President of the World Bank Group has been enthusiastically welcomed in South Korea as a symbol of the increasing visibility of Korean descendants in international society. It is also a good compromise for both the United States and developing countries, as he is the Bank's first president of non-European descent.

 

This decision should be appreciated by a diverse set of World Bank clients, donors, and other stakeholders as well. He is a man of great achievement with a distinguished career, including professorships at Harvard Medical School, a directorship at the Department of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organization (WHO), and, most recently, presidency of Dartmouth College. Throughout most of his career, he has demonstrated his leadership in the fields of health and medicine.

 

However, some critics held this expertise against him, arguing that the World Bank would be better served by a candidate with a background in economics. This argument is misleading when considering the complex nature of development. If economists were best-suited to develop poor countries, the Bank would have reduced poverty a lot faster and more substantially than the present suggests.

 

Eradicating poverty requires a holistic approach that includes health, the environment, psychology, and governance, in addition to the conventional solutions of supplementing income and building infrastructure. Dr. Kim's unique perspective as a Ph.D. in anthropology, his passion to create new organizations such as the community-focused Partners in Health, and his innovative treatment strategy at WHO are all positive signs that the World Bank will better fulfill its poverty reduction objectives.

 

Over the decades, the Bank has continued to reform its programs and institutional principles to sustain growth by empowering the poor and pragmatically focusing on results. President Jim Yong Kim's leadership philosophy fits well with this reform strategy. In his statement regarding his selection as president, Dr. Kim promised the Bank would respond more effectively to the needs of its diverse constituencies, deliver more powerful results, prioritize evidence-based solutions, and amplify the voices of developing countries. Under his leadership, we anticipate the Bank will provide more effective global governance in combating the developing world's poverty and foster sustainable growth.

 

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