25 June 2010: Robert Zoellick, World Bank President, announced the appointment of Andrew Steer as Special Envoy for Climate Change, a new position created for focused leadership and representation of the World Bank in the international climate change discussions.
The appointment responds to the growing scale and scope of the World Bank's support to countries on climate change issues, as well as their demand for the Bank to address development and climate change as interlinked challenges. Steer, a UK national, has held a number of positions within the Bank and has also worked as Director General, Policy and Research, in the UK Department of International Development (DFID) in London, UK. The Special Envoy for Climate Change, which ranks at the level of Vice President, will be responsible for: guiding the Bank's external work on climate change; advancing its internal capabilities in this area; overseeing the Climate Investment Fund (CIF); co-chairing the Strategic Climate Fund and helping mobilize climate financing; and working within and through the Bank's Sustainable Development Network to ensure close integration with the Bank's wider efforts on sustainable development. Steer's appointment will be effective 1 July 2010. [World Bank Press Release]
