11 February 2013: The World Bank has announced the appointment of Mahmoud Mohieldin as Special Envoy on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), who will lead the World Bank’s contribution to the post-2015 development agenda.

In a post to the World Bank’s “Let’s Talk Development” blog, Mohieldin says he will focus on: ensuring the Bank is “doing all we can” to get as close to achieving the MDGs as possible by the 2015 deadline; providing meaningful, coordinated input into the UN-led post-2015 development agenda; supporting countries in building and strengthening their data and statistical capacity related to monitoring progress, guiding policy, and conducting analysis on the MDGs; and innovation in financing instruments to strengthen partnerships and leverage resources among actors.

On providing coordinated input into the post-2015 development agenda, Mohieldin writes that the Bank has established a Post-2015 MDG Working Group, an internal group whose activities will include: drawing lessons from the implementation of the MDGs; integrating concepts of social, economic and environmental sustainability in supporting the UN’s effort to merge the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and MDG processes; and putting the World Bank’s analytical and implementation experience to work for the UN-led process. [“The MDGs and Beyond” Blog Post] [Publication: MDGs and Beyond, Issue 4]