The World Bank will continue to be an enthusiastic partner with China's Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.
"I have been clear in welcoming the AIIB. In fact, many former World Bank employees are working at AIIB," Kim said in New York on Thursday.
Kim said not enough people appreciate China's attempt at multilateralism. The AIIB and the World Bank are already working together to exchange views and procedures on institutional governance, organizational structure, social and environmental safeguards and procurement practices, he added.
"We will look at co-financing projects in (green) energy technology and reducing poverty," Kim said.
The world economy is at a crucial juncture right now, according to Kim. He noted that the goals of developed nations are not the same. "Central bankers in Europe are concerned about growth, while Japan is still dealing with deflation and less is known about what the US will do," said Kim.
Kim said he believes the US will raise interest rates at some point soon and when that happens " emerging markets will find it more difficult to raise money. And when that happens, we (World Bank) will be ready to step in and help."
Kim said the World Bank believes that China will settle into growth of about 7 percent a year, compared with 10.6 percent in 2010. "This is a huge transition China is undertaking in taking its economy from one focused on manufacturing and exports to one based more on consumer demand and services," he said.
Kim said everyone is watching China's economy more closely now because it has become an integral part of global economic scene.
In discussing President Xi Jinping's current visit to the US and the United Nations, Kim said he and the Chinese leader share a US connection.
"When he came to the US (in 1985), he stayed in Muscatine, Iowa, for two to three weeks," Kim said. "That is the town where I grew up, as we were one of the few Asian families in the community. I think President Xi understands something profound about the US due in part to that trip."
Kim said China has always been a strong backer of the World Bank and noted that the bank and China are working jointly on a reform plan for China's healthcare system.
Like the United Nations, the World Bank is also embarking on a program to drastically reduce extreme poverty in the world. Kim said everyone can learn from China on this subject. "China took 600 million out of poverty over the last 25 years. That experience can teach us a lot."
paulwelitzkin@chinadailyusa.com
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