—Family Considerations Lead to Decision to Step Down—
WASHINGTON, D.C., Dec. 8—Jannik Lindbaek, Executive Vice President of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), today announced that, due to illness in his immediate family, he will not seek an extension of his term as head of the Corporation. Lindbaek intends to serve out the one year remaining on his contract which runs through December 1998.
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest multilateral source of funding for private sector projects in the developing world.
"For the last six months my wife, Grete, has been in poor health and is undergoing treatment in Norway. While I am pleased that her condition has stabilized, she faces an indeterminate and lengthy period of treatment. Inevitably, my continued service in Washington over the long term would lead to protracted periods of separation as a family. For this reason, I have informed Mr. Wolfensohn, and the Board of Directors of IFC, that I will not seek an extension of my current term as Executive Vice President,” Lindbaek said.
James D. Wolfensohn, President of IFC and the World Bank Group, expressed support for Lindbaek’s decision, “I have to accept Jannik’s decision to leave IFC based on his wife’s poor health and have deep sympathy for his family situation. Jannik has made a great and lasting contribution to IFC and his personal qualities and standards have been a credit to him as a leader.”
"I am grateful to Jannik for agreeing to serve out the remainder of his term. With all the work he has initiated in changing the strategic agenda of IFC, 1998 will be a very important year. Jannik will also contribute his judgment and experience to the important task of finding a suitable successor,” Wolfensohn added.
The Executive Vice President of IFC is appointed by the President of the World Bank Group and serves for a five year term.
