WASHINGTON – The World Bank Director for the Caribbean, Françoise Clottes, has announced the appointment of Giorgio Valentini as representative for Jamaica and Guyana.
Clottes said the position will be based in Kingston, the Jamaican capital, and will also include programme responsibilities for Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.
“In his new role, Valentini will continue to strengthen relationships between the bank and partner countries, while ensuring the overall quality of the bank’s financial and analytical services,” he said.
Clottes said Valentini, an Italian national, brings over 20 years of experience in international development and the private sector.
He joined the World Bank in 2002, where he has since worked in the Latin America and Africa regions on state modernization, health care, judicial reform, public-private partnerships, social protection and fiscal administration.
His most recent position was Country Representative for Guyana, based in Georgetown, the Guyanese capital.
Before joining the World Bank, Valentini worked as a management consultant for Booz Allen & Hamilton on business development for the private sector and on the reform of the Social Security Administration in the United States. He graduated from the George Washington University in the US with an MBA in management and finance.
“The World Bank is committed to continue supporting the Caribbean as the region makes improvements in economic growth and social development in the wake of the global financial crisis, which has proved particularly challenging to them,” Valentini said.
“The challenges of climate change for the Caribbean countries are also a key focus that we support fully with a variety of programmes tailored to each country’s specific needs,” he said.
Valentini replaces Badrul Haque, who has been appointed Senior Country Officer in the World Bank’s Caribbean Unit in Washington. Haque, a Bangladeshi national, had been the World Bank’s Special Representative in Jamaica since March 2008. (CMC)
