Dhaka, July 3 (UNB) - New president of the World Bank Jim Yong Kim has said the bank’s decision to cancel a $US 1.2-billion loan to Bangladesh on corruption allegations was “appropriate”.

 

The WB chief made the remarks while talking to reporters in Washington DC on Monday, his first day on the job, reports The Globe and Mail.

The immediate past president of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick, cancelled the loan deal on Friday, his last day in office.

Kim supported the move taken by his predecessor which critics say will punish Bangladesh’s poor for the alleged corrupt actions of the few.

“I think it was appropriate,” Kim said of the decision in his first meeting with journalists.

“We are very concerned about the well-being of the poorest people in Bangladesh. But what I must stress is that, the bank’s position is that it does not tolerate corruption.”

On Friday, the bank cancelled its $1.2-billion financing for the $3-billion Padma Bridge project, saying the government had not cooperated in investigating “high-level” corruption in the project.

“The World Bank cannot, should not, and will not turn a blind eye to evidence of corruption,” it said, announcing the loan was being cancelled immediately.

 

Source: International media