Ndiame Diop, an African voice at the helm of the World Bank
Renowned Senegalese economist Ndiame Diop was appointed Vice President of the World Bank for East and Southern Africa in May 2025. From Nairobi, he manages a strategic portfolio exceeding 76 billion dollars, aiming to strengthen development impact across 26 countries on the continent.
Born in Senegal, Ndiame Diop is a true product of African and international academic excellence. Holding a PhD in economics, he joined the World Bank in 2000 through the prestigious Young Professionals Program, beginning a career spanning over twenty-five years that has taken him across four continents.
From Southeast Asia to the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa, a refined expertise
From Southeast Asia to the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa, he has built a refined expertise in economic reforms, fiscal policies, and growth dynamics.
Energy, health, digital connectivity, climate resilience… Crucial challenges
Based in Nairobi since May 1, 2025, he now heads the World Bank’s regional office for East and Southern Africa. He oversees an active portfolio of nearly 400 projects, with a total envelope of 76 billion dollars. This mission covers key issues for the region: energy, health, digital connectivity, climate resilience, infrastructure, agriculture, human capital, and fragility reduction. He succeeds Victoria Kwakwa, who retired after a long career within the institution.
Before this appointment, Ndiame Diop led the World Bank office in Nigeria, the institution’s largest bilateral portfolio in Africa with commitments amounting to 17 billion dollars. There, he strengthened programs related to structural reforms, enterprise financing, digital transition, and agricultural modernization.
He also played a key role in Southeast Asia, coordinating operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Brunei.
Wherever he went, he stood out for a pragmatic approach combining macroeconomic rigor, political dialogue, and measurable impact on populations
Under his leadership, World Bank financing in the Philippines tripled. Wherever he worked, he distinguished himself by a pragmatic approach blending macroeconomic discipline, political dialogue, and measurable impact on communities.
A polyglot, Ndiame Diop speaks French, English, and Wolof, and is also proficient in Arabic and Bahasa Indonesian. Author of numerous publications on inflation, fiscal policy, natural resource management, and economic diversification, he remains an engaged thinker committed to action.
His appointment marks an important milestone for the World Bank, placing a high-level African expert at the head of a strategic region on the continent. For Ndiame Diop, it is also a return to the field, where decisions gain full meaning: close to Africa’s social, economic, and human realities.
