The Trump administration is throwing its support behind an increase in funding for the World Bank, marking a shift in the administration's previous skepticism on the global financial institution, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The White House is supporting a $13 billion increase in funding for the World Bank, reportedly in part because the institution could counter China's growing sphere of control.
“There are reforms that they’re making that we think are quite significant along with the increased funding request,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin
Steven MnuchinMenendez, Rubio ask Yellen to probe meatpacker JBS The Hill's Morning Report - Presented by Goldman Sachs - Biden rallies Senate Dems behind mammoth spending plan Mnuchin dodges CNBC questions on whether Trump lying over election MORE told reporters on Saturday, according to the Journal. The U.S. has veto power over the multilateral organization's banking structure.
The funding increase could also provide more resources to clients originating from poor countries.
“We will lend more over time to the lower-middle income countries,” World Bank president Jim Yong Kim said last week, according to the publication. “There’s nothing in the agreement that targets any specific country.”
The shift follows critical rhetoric from the administration toward the World Bank. Last year, the proposed capital increase was delayed.
“The bottom line here is right now we’ve got too high a percentage of the World Bank’s balance sheet that’s going to countries and to projects that already have ample borrowing capacity,” a senior Treasury official told Reuters last year, reportedly referring to China, among other countries.
“To fund development needs, there needs to be renewed focus on domestic resource mobilization and engagement in private sector development,” the official continued.
The Trump administration has been highly critical of various multilateral deals, including the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, citing their unfairness to the U.S.
