The World Bank Monday unveiled the membership of an independent, high-level commission tasked with making recommendations on how the institution is governed so that it can better fulfill its mission of overcoming global poverty.

The commission was created by World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick in October 2008 to focus on the modernization of World Bank Group governance so it can operate more dynamically, effectively, efficiently, and legitimately in a transformed global political economy, according to a statement released by the Bank.

The commission will report back at the World Bank's October 2009 Annual Meetings.

"By bringing the perspectives of a diverse group of leaders from outside the institution, the High-Level Commission will complement the Board's important work on internal governance reform," said Zoellick in the statement.

"I thank the Commission's members for their willingness to take on this important task and encourage them to be bold and far-sighted," he statement.

The 12 members of the commission, chaired by former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, have all held or hold senior positions at an international level and are drawn from developed and developing countries.

Members of the commission also includes Rima Khalaf, former UN assistant secretary general, Pascal Lamy, director general of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China.

(Xinhua News Agency March 10, 2009)