Adam Zivo: World Bank corruption scandal tests the foundations of the Western-backed international financial system – By Adam Zivo (National Post) / Oct 14 2021
This scandal has undermined the credibility of the World Bank and IMF, which underpin the western-led global financial system
Earlier this year, an investigative report accused the World Bank’s chief executive, Kristalina Georgieva, of manipulating the 2018 “Doing Business” report (DBR), which measures countries based on their regulatory environments and protection of property rights, to inappropriately boost China’s ranking. Georgieva is currently managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which recently decided not to fire her over these corruption allegations (the two organizations are distinct, but closely related).
This scandal, as well as the IMF’s subsequent unwillingness to reprimand Georgieva, has undermined the credibility of these two global financial institutions, which are integral to western soft power.
From 2003 to 2020, the World Bank’s DBR was generally seen as a trusted and influential measure of how easily business could be conducted around the globe. Countries with higher rankings were more attractive to foreign investors, leading governments to put considerable effort into boosting their DBR score.
Yet according to Paul Cadario, a former World Bank senior manager and distinguished fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, there has been controversy about the DBR’s methodology since its inception, as some of its scoring criteria were ambiguous and therefore subjective.
