The World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz has said that the past 25 years have seen more than 400 million people worldwide escape extreme poverty. According to Wolfowitz, this is the most successful quarter-century in the history of the fight against poverty.

He however, warned that Africa risks subjection to a serious economic stagnation, if the donor community fails to live to their pledge to double aid to the continent by 2010.

Wolfowitz said that the international aid donors should move quickly to support African countries that have recently emerged from crises, such as Sierra Leone, DRC and the Central African Republic.

Wolfowitz was addressing the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Singapore.

"The international community needs to make greater strides in resolving conflict, preventing diseases and strengthening governance to bring hope to many millions more, particularly in Africa, who still live in dire conditions," Wolfowitz told delegates.

The World Bank President stressed that Africa remains the Bank's top priority given the persistent growth in the number of people living in poverty.

The World Bank President stressed that Africa remains the Bank's top priority, given the persistent growth in the number of people living in poverty, seeing not only need but also opportunities across the continent.

Meanwhile, African ministers at the meeting have expressed the continents commitment to overcoming the challenges of governance and corruption.

And, the WB President on Monday won backing from the Bank's powerful 24-member Development Committee for his fight against graft and corruption.

But bank member governments demanded constant oversight of the drive and said incentives, rather than sanctions, must be used to promote good governance.

Endorsement of the anti-graft campaign is a boost for Wolfowitz, a former US Deputy Defence Secretary, who took over as head of the Washington-based institution, last year.

However, the go-ahead came only after ministers, attending a joint World Bank-International Monetary Fund (IMF) Development Committee, insisted that fighting poverty must remain the Bank's key objective.

African ministers at the meeting have expressed the continent's commitment to overcoming the challenges of governance and corruption.

Wolfowitz was also repeatedly told that his focus should be on the wider issue of promoting good governance rather than merely combating corruption.

Addressing the same gathering the IMF chief Rodrigo de Rato welcomed the passage of reforms, giving a bigger voice to four emerging economies. He, however, warned that the members face daunting challenges in keeping global growth on track.

"The global growth cycle may be turning," de Rato said, pointing to high oil prices, massive imbalances in trade and investment and the threat of renewed protectionism amid stalled world trade talks.

Although world economic growth remains steady, he said the recent collapse of the Doha Round of World Trade Organization negotiations, aimed at forging a new global trade treaty, was "disappointing and damaging."

Monday night, the 184-nation International Monetary Fund approved reforms to increase the voting shares of emerging economies China, South Korea, Turkey and Mexico to reflect their growing contribution to the world economy.

The focus should be on the wider issue of promoting good governance rather than merely combating corruption.

As a second step of reform, the IMF, which originally focused on the needs of Western powers when it was formed in 1945, is to overhaul its entire voting structure within two years.

The proposal won 90.6 percent of the total vote. It needed 85 percent to pass.

Voting shares affect member countries' say in the decisions of the Washington-based institution and how much they can borrow from it. The IMF works to promote global economic stability and provide emergency loans to members in financial crisis.

"These reforms are the first step in a process that will raise the level of representation of many emerging market countries," de Rato said. "They will enhance our effectiveness and add legitimacy to all the other reforms that we are implementing."

The reform measure was the most important agenda item on IMF's annual meeting, held in Singapore along with its sister institution, the World Bank, which lends money to countries to fight poverty. The meetings wind up Wednesday.




Contributed by Eddie Rwema, Singapore. Reprinted with permission from AllAfrica.com.
Copyright © 2006 allAfrica.com. All rights reserved.

To read another Global Envision article about poverty in Africa, see Aiding Poverty in Africa: Giving Until it Hurts.



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