WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 -- The World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim on Thursday mourned the passing of Nelson Mandela and hailed the former South African president as "a man who brought a rainbow of possibilities to a country that was segregated into black and white."

"We are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. On behalf of the World Bank Group staff, I convey my deepest sympathies to Graca Machel, Nelson Mandela's family, and the South African people," Kim said in a statement.

"The world has lost a man who brought a rainbow of possibilities to a country that was segregated into black and white. But his gifts to humankind remain with us. He taught the world that no matter the sins of the past, no matter the horror of apartheid, the way ahead toward peace was to forgive but not forget, to remember what happened but also to offer a hand in order to start anew," he said.

"We are humbled by his leadership. We are inspired by his commitment to reconciliation. He showed us that fundamental change is possible and must be pursued when the freedom and well-being of people are at stake. On this sad day, our thoughts are with the South African people," Kim added.

Mandela died on Thursday at the age of 95 after a prolonged lung infection, South African President Jacob Zuma announced.

Mandela, who served as president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, had battled health problems in recent months, including a recurring lung infection that led to numerous hospitalizations.

He spent 27 years in prison after being convicted of treason by the then white minority government in South Africa, only to forge a peaceful end to white rule by negotiating with his captors after his release in 1990.

The former South African president led the African National Congress, long a banned liberation movement, to a resounding electoral victory in 1994, the first fully democratic election in the country's history.