SINGAPORE, July 1 (Reuters) - International Finance

Corporation (IFC) said on Monday it has appointed Vikram Kumar

as its new regional industry director for infrastructure and

natural resources in Asia and the Pacific, effective Monday.

The appointment comes as Asia Pacific is experiencing

growing investor interest in infrastructure assets across the

region as it rapidly urbanises, its energy demand grows and its

population becomes increasingly affluent and digitised.

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, currently has an

investment portfolio of $3.1 billion across infrastructure and

natural resources in Asia and the Pacific, according to its

statement.

The firm continues to grow in areas such as renewable

energy, digital infrastructure, and transportation, it added.

"This is a crucial time for Asia and the Pacific to expand

access to clean energy, to boost digital connectivity, and to

make cities more inclusive and resilient as urbanization

continues," Kumar said in the statement.

Kumar will lead IFC's infrastructure and natural resources

investment team across Asia and the Pacific to develop and

implement power, water, telecoms, transport and other

infrastructure projects with public and private-sector partners,

IFC said.

Kumar, who has more than 20 years of global investment and

development expertise, most recently served as IFC's global

transport manager based in Washington, it said.

He will be based in Singapore in his new role, IFC added.

(Reporting by Yantoultra Ngui; Editing by Janane Venkatraman

)