World Bank appoints new Regional Vice-President

Ms. Anna Bjerde, a Swedish national, became the new World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia on May 1st, 2020. In this position, Ms. Bjerde will lead the World Bank’s strategic, analytical, operational, and knowledge work in the region, Report informs citing foreign media.

Prior to this, Anna was Director of Strategy and Operations for the Middle East and North Africa region at the World Bank. Before that, she oversaw the Bank’s strategies, lending, and analytical work for sustainable development, covering all six of the Bank’s regions. She also held a deputy Vice President role in the Europe and Central Asia region in 2014-15.

Anna has over 25 years of experience working in development in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, East Asia, and South Asia. Anna is a recognized leader in economic development, with a specific interest in inclusive growth and sustainable development.

Anna is an experienced leader and manager, with experience overseeing large and decentralized workforces and country offices, as well as forging strong bilateral and multilateral partnerships. Anna has a Master’s in Business and Economics from the University of Stockholm.

“As Vice President for Europe and Central Asia, I will work very closely with governments in client countries to help them achieve strong development outcomes, but our immediate focus is on addressing the health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says the new Vice President. “In the short-term, we are providing fast-track financing and policy tools to help protect people’s lives and livelihoods. In the medium-term, we will help countries cushion the economic and fiscal fallout from the crisis through appropriate policy measures and financing.”

To date, the World Bank has committed more than $1.4 billion to help countries in Europe and Central Asia mitigate the impacts of COVID-19.