KABUL, July 7, 2019 – Henry Kerali is succeeding Shubham Chaudhuri who completed his term as the Country Director for Afghanistan.
Henry Kerali, a Ugandan national, joined the World Bank in 2003 and has held several leadership positions across the Bank. He recently served as the Country Director for Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone in the Africa Region.
“I am honored to be assigned as the World Bank Country Director for Afghanistan to help the Afghan people in their journey toward a better future,” said Henry Kerali. “. Together with international partners, we stand by the government and the people at this critical time aiming to further boost shared prosperity and reduce poverty in the country.”
Before serving as Country Director in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Henry worked as the World Bank's Regional Director for the South Caucasus, based in Georgia. His experience spans across different regions of the world including Latin America, Africa, East Asia, South Asia, and Europe and Central Asia.
Before joining the World Bank, Henry was a Professor at the University of Birmingham, England, specializing in the development of transport infrastructure. He holds a BSc (Eng.) degree from Makerere University, and MSc and PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK.
About the World Bank activities in Afghanistan:
The World Bank Group’s program in Afghanistan is currently governed by its Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for 2017-2020. The Bank also administers, on behalf of 34 donors, the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), the World Bank Group’s largest single-country multi-donor trust fund.
The resources from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank Group’s fund for the poorest countries, and ARTF underpin the Bank Group’s long-term engagement and commitment to Afghanistan. Annual IDA and ARTF commitments to Afghanistan have been around $200 million and $900 million, respectively. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group’s private sector arm, aims to expand its support to Afghanistan from its current portfolio of $54 million to a cumulative investment of about $80 million over 2017-2020. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the Bank Group’s political risk insurance arm, stands ready to provide additional support with a focus in the finance, manufacturing, agribusiness and services, and infrastructure sectors.
