World Bank President David Malpass has announced he will step down early.

Mr Malpass, 66, informed the Washington-based World Bank’s board of his intentions to depart by June 30, the bank said in a statement this week. 

Mr Malpass was nominated to the post by former US president Donald Trump in 2019 after working as a top Treasury Department official. 

Calls for him to resign rang out last year when he fumbled a question on the causes of climate change, causing criticism that he did not accept the scientific consensus of the impact of man-made emissions.

Mr Malpass has since said he “really wasn’t prepared” for the question, and has called for expanding the development mission of the World Bank to explicitly include public benefits including climate change responses.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has been calling for changes to the World Bank to more aggressively extend its balance sheet and better mobilise private-sector money to help address global challenges.

The World Bank Group “is fundamentally strong, financially sustainable, and well positioned to increase its development impact in the face of urgent global crises”, Mr Malpass said in a statement.

Mr Malpass was the leader of the World Bank throughout its COVID-19 response, and has recently worked on its road map to help it better address global challenges like climate change and pandemics.

The World Bank is historically headed by someone from the United States - its largest shareholder - with a European leading the International Monetary Fund. However, developing countries and emerging markets are pushing to widen those choices.

Nadia Daar, Head of Oxfam International’s Washington DC Office, said: “If shareholders really want to ‘evolve’ the World Bank, then here is their golden opportunity”. 

“Malpass’ successor must be hired based on an open, merit-based and transparent selection process rather than the 80-year-old gentleman's agreement which sees the job automatically go to someone from the US. 

“This is critical for the credibility and future strength of multilateralism.”