Zagreb, July 10, 2017 – Ms. Elisabetta Capannelli has been appointed as the new World Bank Country Manager for Croatia and Slovenia, to lead the WB office in Zagreb. Ms. Capannelli, an Italian national, brings 25 years of experience in the development field to her new position, as well as, experience of working in more than 30 countries, covering macro-economics, urban development, infrastructure and governance matters.
She started her international career in 1992 in Asia working for the Asian Development Bank in Manila and moved to the World Bank in 1998. From 2005-2008 she took leave from the World Bank and worked for the European Commission, including as Advisor of Joaquin Almunia, then Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs. Ms. Capannelli has been the World Bank’s Country Manager for Romania and Hungary for the last four years based in Bucharest. She has post-graduate degrees from Bologna and Sussex Universities.
The World Bank’s current portfolio in Croatia includes lending in the amount of $970 million and a variety of technical assistance covering among others: spatial analysis of poverty, business clusters competitiveness, public expenditure review in science and innovation, subnational Doing Business for five cities and deregulation of services. About two thirds of the Bank’s financial engagement focuses on the transport sector, with about twenty percent supporting the social inclusion agenda, as well as land registry and innovation. The projects incorporate significant support to public administration, helping Croatia maximize the benefits of EU membership, including EU funds absorption.
Since joining the World Bank in 1993, Croatia has benefited from financial and technical assistance, policy advice, and analytical services provided by the global development institution. To date, the World Bank has supported 54 operations amounting to around $3.9 billion.
