G24 calls for strategic review of World Bank
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On 23 September, ministers from the G24 group of developing countries at the BWIs met to discuss the global economy, debt relief and the strategic roles of the Bank and Fund. Highlights include:
Debt relief
- G24 urges the IMF and the World Bank to “facilitate the HIPC process by placing more weight on country-specific circumstances and further streamline conditionality”.
- Extend the G8 debt deal to all low-income countries, ensure that debt relief funds are additional to development aid, and “avoid additional conditionality apart from IDA-14 eligibility criteria that have already been approved.”
IMF strategic roles
- The G24 urges “more candid and effective surveillance” over rich countries.
- The IMF should support countercyclical policies.
- Urge a “cautious approach” to capital account liberalisation.
- More resources are needed for the IMF under the next review of quotas.
World Bank strategic roles
The G24 called on the World Bank to “review its medium-term strategy in light of the findings of the 2004 Annual Review of Development Effectiveness”. They urged the “reassessment of World Bank country business models and global programmes that are not yet fully aligned with poverty reduction goals and progress toward the MDGs.”
Policy support for low-income countries
The PRGF shocks facility was welcomed, but ministers underscored the importance of streamlining conditionality.
Trade
Ministers urged the IMF and the World Bank to continue to “evaluate and widely publicize” the impact of rich country trade policies.
Representation of developing countries
Ministers called for “a new quota formula to reflect more accurately the relative economic size of developing countries in the world economy, taking into account purchasing power parity”. Ministers also urged a “substantial increase in developing countries’ basic votes to at least restore their relative importance to what it was at the inception of the IMF” and called on the IMF and the World Bank to “ensure that developing countries are adequately represented on the staff of the two institutions, both in number and in key positions.”
