China's Lin Yifu named World Bank chief economist

Mumbai: Justin Lin Yifu, the Taiwanese economist who defected to China and rose to become a top economic strategist in the country, has been named the World Bank's chief economist, the first time for a person from China.

Lin, 55, replaces Francois Bourguignon, who retired as the World Banks chief economist last year. He is expected to assume charge as the senior vice president for development economics and chief economist at the global development bank on May 31.

The founding director of the China Centre for Economic Research (CCER) at Peking University, Lin has deep knowledge of agricultural issues, especially in the context of a developing country. He is also well acquainted with economic challenges in Africa, where China is aggressively seeking trade and investment opportunities.

"As our first chief economist from a developing country, and an expert on economic development and particularly agriculture, Justin Lin brings a unique set of skills and experience to the World Bank Group," bank president Robert Zoellick said in a statement announcing the appointment.

"I look forward to working closely with him on a number of areas, including growth and investment in Africa, opportunities for South-South learning and bank instruments to better support countries hit by high energy and agriculture prices," he said.

Lin, a graduate from Taiwan's National Chengchi University, earned an MA in economics at Peking University in 1982, followed by a doctorate from the University of Chicago in 1986.

He has done extensive research into fiscal decentralisation, reform of state businesses, rice farm economics and general farm sector reform and modernisation. He also had a key role in Chinas economic modernisation and opening up.