At the 80th anniversary of the World Bank and IMF, global civil society must maintain pressure on the Brazilian and South African G20 presidencies to ensure the forth Financing for Development Conference in 2025 results in urgently required international financial architecture reform.
US conservative blueprint for second Trump term calls for US to withdraw from World Bank and IMF, amid continued geopolitical tensions and unresolved debt crisis in Global South.
The unfolding debt crisis threatens IDA’s support for 75 low-income countries, without replenishment of grant resources.
In the absence of a G20 Communiqué or Chair statement, Brazilian minister of finance, head of the central bank and other senior officials took questions at a short press conference, with discussion focused on the impact of continued restrictive US monetary policy on the global debt and development finance and the need for more responsive and better capitalised MDBs.
Urgent BWIs reforms remain hostage to lack of political will in Global North as the G20 failed to deliver on important issues within a fragmented geopolitical situation.
At a time when transformative changes on governance and development financing are required, the World Bank and IMF have instead opted for a slimmed down Spring Meetings schedule.
Calls for a ‘historic’ IDA21 replenishment risk diverting attention from the policy framework necessary for IDA to support countries to break their dependence on development finance and undertake the ecologically sustainable and just economic transformation long sought by their populations.
The IMFC again did not issue a communiqué as it could not agree on language on the war in Ukraine. A chair’s statement was issued in lieu of the communiqué and emphasised the resilience of the global safety net system, better than projected conditions and concerns about significant challenges.
New financing for the IMF and World Bank proposed by the US will not fix the flawed private sector development paradigm that burdens Global South economies with debt.
IMF managing director continues to refuse to answer letter from UN Human Rights Council concerning the negative impact of IMF surcharges as world celebrates 75th anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Spring Meetings unlikely to deliver structural reforms required to respond to worsening polycrisis, as Global North-driven World Bank reform set to divert attention from poverty and inequality and geopolitical tensions dampen hopes of new SDR allocation and IMF quota reform.
The World Bank Group needs to address its democratic deficit and lack of accountability. As it prepares to elect a new president and implement its “evolution roadmap”, it should use these key opportunities to embrace a profound reform.
At the 80th anniversary of the World Bank and IMF, global civil society must maintain pressure on the Brazilian and South African G20 presidencies to ensure the forth Financing for Development Conference in 2025 results in urgently required international financial architecture reform.
