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Jim Yong Kim

March 23, 2012 by · Comments Off on Jim Yong Kim 

Jim Yong Kim, President Barack Obama picked Dartmouth College President Jim Yong Kim as the U.S. nominee to lead the World Bank, choosing a global-health expert to head the development institution.

Jim Yong Kim, president of Dartmouth College, Dr. Kim, an American physician who was born in South Korea and raised in Iowa, is a surprise pick for a job that has usually been held by people with political or finance experience. The novel choice was designed in part to counter criticism from officials in developing nations who have complained about the U.S. lock on the position.

“Jim has spent more than two decades working to improve conditions in developing countries around the world,” Mr. Obama said Friday. “It’s time for a development professional to lead the world’s largest development agency.”

Dr. Kim, 52, became Dartmouth’s president in July 2009. He is a former director of the Department of HIV/AIDS at the World Health Organization, where he launched an initiative to treat 3 million patients living with HIV. He holds a medical degree and a doctorate in anthropology, both from Harvard University, and an undergraduate degree from Brown University.

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