Bank and Fund staff have complained that the Joint IMF-World Bank Implementation Committee (JIC), which has been established to coordinate work on the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) program is just “political whitewash”. They are concerned that the JIC, which Gordon Brown and Clare Short pushed for, is simply introducing another layer of bureaucracy without adding value.
In addition to overseeing implementation and coordinating reports and briefings to the Executive Board, the JIC will provide a means for resolving disputes between the Bank and Fund which can’t be resolved at the regional level. If disputes can’t be settled by the JIC they will then be taken jointly to the senior managements in both institutions.
The Committee, which will become effective on May 1, will be co-chaired by Masood Ahmed (Deputy Director of Policy Department and Review Department, IMF) and Kemal Dervis (Vice President of the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network, World Bank).
