World Bank chief economist Indermit Gill, recognized for his contributions to debt transparency and sustainability, will retire at the end of August, as announced by President Ajay Banga.
Indermit Gill, the chief economist of the World Bank and an Indian American economist, is set to retire at the end of August. The announcement of his departure was made by World Bank President Ajay Banga in a memo to staff, indicating that the process to appoint Gill’s successor will commence shortly.
Banga praised Gill’s extensive career with the World Bank Group, highlighting his previous role as vice president for equitable growth, finance, and institutions before he assumed the position of chief economist and senior vice president in September 2022. According to Banga, Gill has been instrumental in promoting transparency through data, focusing on enhancing debt transparency, sustainability, and restructuring for low- and middle-income countries.
“His leadership elevated research on small states, low-income countries, industrial policy, climate resilience, and public finance, and helped bring that work into global policy conversations through stronger partnerships with think tanks and research centers in Rome and Tokyo,” Banga stated in the memo.
During his tenure, Gill oversaw significant improvements in the data, tools, and analysis used in the World Bank’s assessment of the business climate across up to 180 countries. This initiative, now known as “Business Ready,” was launched following the cancellation of the previous “Doing Business” rankings in 2022 due to revelations of data irregularities and favoritism toward China.
Gill earned his PhD from the University of Chicago and became the chief economist and senior vice president for development economics in 2022. Prior to this, he played a crucial role as the World Bank’s Vice President for Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions, where he helped shape the institution’s response to a series of unprecedented challenges faced by developing economies since 2020.
In addition to his administrative roles, Gill led the World Bank’s influential 2009 World Development Report on economic geography. He is also known for introducing the concept of the “middle-income trap,” which describes how countries can stagnate after reaching a certain income level. The upcoming 2024 World Development Report, developed under his guidance, will focus on strategies for countries to escape this trap by adopting modern technologies and fostering innovation.
Gill has an extensive publication record on critical policy issues affecting developing countries, including topics such as sovereign debt vulnerabilities, green growth, natural-resource wealth, labor markets, and poverty and inequality. Between 2016 and 2021, he served as a professor of public policy at Duke University and held a non-resident senior fellow position at the Brookings Institution’s Global Economy and Development program. He has also taught at Georgetown University and the University of Chicago.
As Gill prepares for his retirement, his contributions to the World Bank and the broader economic discourse will be remembered, particularly his commitment to improving the financial landscape for low- and middle-income countries, according to Investing.com.