As a result of the economic downturn, an additional 55 to 90 million people will be trapped in extreme poverty in 2009, with the number of hungry people expected to soar past one billion.
That is the conclusionn of an opinion piece, written by Marwan Muasher, senior vice president for external affairs at the World Bank, in Wednesdays edition of The New Times (Rwanda).
Muasher estimates that Africas growth will dramatically slow to only 1,7 percent in 2009.
He notes that “before the financial crisis Africa had made great progress, with a robust growth rate of 4,9 percent in 2008. But African countries are now feeling the full effect of the rapid declines in remittances, commodity prices, exports and private capital which had all been important ingredients in the gains made against poverty in previous years.”
The World Bank is positioned to triple its lending to 100 billion US dollar over three years. It is also fast-tracking interest free loans and grants to the 78 poorest countries, many of which are in sub-Saharan Africa.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
He added that “…Africa did not cause the financial crisis, and Africa must be supported in its effort to weather its impact and protect the progress it had achieved in the previous decade … Its voice must be heard. If the global community is wise, it will see Africa’s continued growth as key to the global rebound.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
