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September 29, 2022

A group of 27 progressive House Democrats on Thursday called on President Joe Biden to press the World Bank Group to remove its president after recent comments put into question his belief in human-caused climate change.

The lawmakers' letter to Biden — led by Reps. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Sean Casten (D-Ill.) — was in reaction to David Malpass saying, "I’m not a scientist,” in response to a question about whether he believed climate change was caused by the burning of fossil fuels.

“The World Bank Group must be a global leader of responsible and sustainable financing for developing countries and it is unacceptable for David Malpass, as President for this leading international development institution to be so brazenly ignorant toward the impacts of the climate crisis,” the letter states.

"We need a World Bank Group leader who fully appreciates the threat of climate change and the need to accelerate the global transition to a clean just energy future," wrote the lawmakers.

International observers have pointed out that Malpass’ World Bank has slow-walked the organization’s work on clean energy and transition away from financing fossil fuel projects in some of the world’s poorest nations (Climatewire, Sept. 23).

The U.S. has significant leverage in who runs the World Bank, and Malpass' tenure began during the Trump administration. Environmental groups have long pressured the bank's board of governors to remove him.

Malpass quickly embarked on an apology tour following outcry from notable climate activists, including former Vice President Al Gore, who called the World Bank president a “climate denier.”

The economist and former Treasury Department official told CNN International, “I am not a denier,” and later told staff in an email that his comments were "incorrect and regrettable."

Malpass told POLITICO he "would be happy to meet with climate scientists," but he also defended the bank's support for natural gas projects in developing countries, downplayed the need to coordinate climate spending with other multinational development institutions and pushed back on calls for his ouster (Greenwire, Sept. 23).

The progressives called out Malpass and the World Bank for still funding fossil fuel projects to the tune of $14 billion since the Paris climate agreement, more than any other multilateral development bank, they said.

"Given the urgent investment needs in developing countries, the World Bank Group must do better," the lawmakers wrote.


By:  Rob Hotakainen
Source: E&E News