World Bank appoints Kaushik Basu as chief economist

World Bank appoints Kaushik Basu as chief economist    The World Bank on Wednesday announced the appointment of Kaushik Basu as its new Chief Economist. Sixty-year-old Mr. Basu, who most recently served the government of India as chief economic adviser, will replace Justin Lin, whose term will expire on 1st of June.

Jim Yong Kim, president of World Bank Group, said in a statement that Mr. Kaushik Basu's first hand experience in the Ministry of Finance, in addition to his notable academic achievements, would be a great asset to the institution.

In the statement, Mr. Kim added, "Kaushik is uniquely suited to help us offer evidence-based solutions and advise to client countries and provide innovative excellence in leading our development research."

Mr. Basu holds a Ph. D. from the London School of Economics, and is currently on leave from his position as a professor of economics & international studies at New York-based Cornell University.

In 1992, he founded the Centre for Development Economics at the Delhi School of Economics. His contributions to the field span from development economics to welfare economics and from public economics to industrial organization.

Mr. Basu is the World Bank's second chief economist from a developing country. Outgoing Justin Lin is from China.