Port Moresby, July 1, 2024 – Starting today, Mr. Khwima Nthara becomes the World Bank Group Country Manager for Papua New Guinea (PNG), a position that will unify country-level leadership across the institution to better support PNG’s public and private sector priorities. This newly created position provides a single point of contact for access to the full breadth of World Bank Group products and services and will enhance the institution's ability to address global challenges and drive development with speed, efficiency, and impact.
“This unified leadership approach tremendously improves the WBG’s capacity to support PNG’s development ambitions,” said Mr. Nthara, the World Bank Group Country Manager for PNG. “It will enable us to improve our scope, scale, and speed and therefore make us a better partner in supporting the government, the private sector, and ultimately, the people of Papua New Guinea.”
In PNG, the World Bank Group’s work aims to help end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity in a sustainable way so that everyone can benefit equally regardless of their gender, location, or social and economic circumstances.
Mr. Nthara has been World Bank Country Manager for Papua New Guinea since 2023. He joined the World Bank Group in February 2005 as Country Economist for Malawi and has since held positions across the World Bank that include Country Manager for Liberia. Before joining the World Bank, Mr. Nthara was Manager of Deloitte’s Development Consulting Practice, Manager of the UK-funded Malawi Trade and Poverty Program, and Economics Lecturer at the University of Malawi. Mr. Nthara is a Malawian national with a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.
The introduction of joint country representation is an important step towards building a stronger World Bank Group. Papua New Guinea is one of 21 World Bank Group offices transitioning to a single World Bank Group Country Manager or Resident Representative for IBRD, IDA, IFC, and MIGA.
About the World Bank Group: The World Bank Group has a bold vision: to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. In more than 100 countries, it provides financing, advice, and innovative solutions that improve lives by creating jobs, strengthening economic growth, and confronting urgent global development challenges.