Bogota, February 14th, 2011 – Geoffrey Bergen, who on March 15th, 2011 will officially become the World Bank’s Country Manager for Colombia, will begin contacting national authorities during the week of February 14th, accompanied by the Director for Mexico and Colombia, Gloria Grandolini, within the framework of a working visit. Grandolini will introduce Bergen to Colombia’s new government authorities, representatives of other international organizations and opinion leaders.
“Colombia is one of the Bank’s most important clients. We are sure that Geoffrey Bergen’s presence in the country will help us maintain this type of fluid and constant dialog, and it will also allow us to closely address the development challenges mentioned by President Santos and which this institution is openly committed to supporting,” said Grandolini.
Bergen, a U.S. citizen, began his career in the World Bank almost two decades ago. In this time he has occupied different posts, among them Representative in Honduras and Chad, as well as being Coordinator of the World Bank’s programs in Kenya, Eritrea and Somalia. He joined the World Bank in 1993 as an External Relations Officer. He has a Ph.D. in Political Sciences from the University of California and a M.D. in International Relations from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
Bergen will have three priorities:
To continue the excellent relationship between the Bank and the Colombian government; monitor the progress of the new Country Strategic Alliance (CSA) 2011-2015 with the objective of reaching its goals and guarantee the quality of the Bank’s services; and to guide and support the management and operation of its office in Colombia.
Bergen replaces Eduardo Somensatto, who returned to WB headquarters in Washington, DC.
