Ajay Banga has been elected president of the World Bank (WB), the institution announced in a statement on Wednesday after a meeting of its board of directors, AFP reported.

The 63-year-old Indian-American businessman, nominated by the United States, has repeatedly said he wants to prioritize funding to fight global warming and reforming the World Bank during his term.

He is expected to take office for a five-year term on June 2, reports SB.

The World Bank has traditionally been the prerogative of the United States, with Americans always running the Bank since its inception following the Bretton Woods Agreements of 1944.

But this hegemony is increasingly challenged, especially by large developing countries, led by Brazil, China, India and Russia, which for several years have wanted to see their place in international financial institutions.

Amid rising geopolitical tensions, the US decision to nominate Bangu, who was born and raised in India, comes as the US seeks to draw closer to another Asian giant to counter Chinese influence in the region.

As soon as he was nominated, Ajay Banga embarked on a world tour to promote his candidacy and garner the support of as many countries as possible, especially developing countries.

He could count on support for his candidacy in India, Kenya and South Africa.

But not only, because Banga could also count on the support of several French-speaking countries, in particular, as Abdul Salam Bello, the administrator of the WB, which represents 23 African countries, reminded AFP in mid-April.

“I think this campaign is going very well,” a Treasury Department official said in late March: “His experience is seen as critical, as is his knowledge of the private sector and public-private partnerships, which are critical in the world. Bank”.