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Debt Help WASHINGTON, DC -- A coalition of development and environmental advocates today said a new report by a Congressionally appointed commission is a welcome acknowledgement that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group are largely failing in their mission to address world poverty and economic stability, and need major overhaul. However, the groups say that while the report contains some laudable recommendations, it fails to address other key fundamental problems.

The boycott was launched because, while the World Bank has adopted new rhetoric, - - have remained largely unchanged, plundering environments and economies of poor countries. The campaign demands that the World Bank halt its devastating structural adjustment lending and cancel debt claims it has on countries in the Global South. The World Bank gets 80% of its financing through bond sales on private financial markets to institutional investors and others. The World Bank Bonds Boycott was launched in April at the time of the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington. Human rights, environmental, labor and development groups in over 35 countries support the campaign.

Counseling Debt According to the report, written by a panel of economists headed by Allan Meltzer, the failures of the World Bank Group and IMF can be traced to "overlapping missions, ineffectiveness, corruption, and waste of resources, and failure to develop successful regional programs in agriculture, forestry, environment and health care," among other problems. But while the Commission also said "lack of transparency and accountability" contributed to this failure, it did not offer any reforms to address this problem.

''We are not saying the Bank should disengage, but we need new approaches, even the more successful reformers (Ghana and Uganda) prefer a modest amount of conditionality.'' Apart from being required for continued loan assistance from the Bank and IMF, sticking to the loan conditions is also a prerequisite for governments to obtain assistance from bilateral donors and for debt relief. Saharan Africa has been shrinking. From 32 dollars per head in 1990 it dropped to 19 dollars per head by 1998, forcing these countries to depend more on IMF and Bank loans.

Consolidation Consumer Debt "The Meltzer Commission report gives further weight to the growing evidence that these institutions have caused serious social and environmental damage to those nations they should be assisting, "said Carol Welch, International Policy Analyst for Friends of the Earth. "However, until the IMF's chronic lack of accountability and democracy are also dealt with, any reforms are unlikely to have a lasting positive impact."

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In 2003, Nstor Kirchner became president, managing to suspend Argentina's debt to the IMF and negotiate better terms. In 2006, the country paid off its entire IMF debt (its debts to private investors, however, dollar headache). Over the last three years, Argentina's economy has made a resounding comeback. Although inflation continues to be a threat, foreign investment is slowly returning.

Debt Free The IMF's lack of accountability and democracy, combined with US dominance of the institution, has made the IMF an agent of Wall Street, rather than an enabler of global stability and prosperity. The groups say an independent evaluation unit and an ombudsperson are essential requirements for an overhauled IMF, as is true participation of IMF borrowers in the institution's governance.

By Jan Dahinten. SINGAPORE (Reuters) The worst of the global financial crisis is yet to come and a large U.S. bank will fail in the next few months as the world’s biggest economy hits further troubles, former IMF chief economist Kenneth Rogoff said on Tuesday.

Consolidation Debt Service While the Commission rightly identifies structural adjustment lending as a function of the World Bank Group and not the IMF, it fails to call for more oversight and attention to the environmental and social implications of this function. Currently the Bank does not conduct environmental or social assessments for these programs, despite more than a decade of research that clearly demonstrates their negative impacts to poor countries.

Company Consolidation Debt The Commission finds correctly that the World Bank Group should restrict its financial support to sectors that have a direct and demonstrable connection to poverty alleviation and sustainable development. However, it overlooks a number of important sectors that can help fulfill this mandate in environmentally and socially beneficial ways. These include investment in renewable energy and efficiency programs, education, improved urban living conditions, and combating pollution.

Consolidation Debt Online The groups supported the Commission's recommendations that the IMF's structural adjustment lending program be eliminated, stressing that the IMF is not equipped to provide poor countries with long-term development finance and capacity building. They also endorsed the Commission's call for immediate debt cancellation for the poorest countries. Finally, the groups backed the Commission's call for elimination of the Multilateral International Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the World Bank's private risk insurance arm, saying the World Bank's development mandate should not be confused with that of supporting the private sector or providing risk insurance to companies.

Consolidation Debt Free Contact: Andrea Durbin or Carol Welch, Friends of the Earth:
202-783-7400 or via cell 202-744-8048
Jo Marie Griesgraber, Center of Concern: 202-635-2757, ext. 126
Joanne Carter, Results: 202-783-7100
Deborah Rephan, Environmental Media Services 202-463-1310, ext. 267

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