World Bank President James Wolfensohn will not seek reappointment after his term expires in June, reports Treasury spokesman Rob Nichols. This is what Mr. Wolfensohn told US Treasury Secretary John Snow. Earlier he said speaking on ABC news that 10 years at the helm of the world’s primary lending institution is probable enough.

``The secretary views the 10 years of Jim Wolfensohn as a remarkable record,’’ Nichols said. ``We’re just now beginning discussions with the other shareholders on the process of finding a successor.’’

The resignation of the current president gives a signal for a possible overhaul of the World Bank’s structure that in the opinion of its critics has become too costly, cumbersome and inefficient.

“Every World Bank project operates like the invasion of Iraq. People who don’t know the language penetrate into a country, they want to do good, and they end up having unintended consequences,” said Edward Luttwak, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

“The place needs to be shut down. It can be replaced by a line item in the budget called ‘emergency help.’ ”
Many shareholders would like to see the World Bank restrict its role to the projects that focus on health care, education and other areas, and stop the practice of handing out zero percent loans.

The World Bank has 184 shareholder nations with the US being the biggest among them and will spend $20.1 billion on 245 projects around the globe in 2004. The president is typically a US citizen and is appointed by the US President. France, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom are the largest shareholders after the US.

Among the potential candidates to succeed Mr. Wolfensohn are named U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick; former Credit Suisse First Boston Chief Executive Jack Hennessy; former U.S. Trade Representative Carla Hills; U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Randall Tobias; and Anne Krueger, the International Monetary Fund’s second-ranked official.