Nearly seventy non-governmental organisations (NGOs) from across Europe (herunder ingen danske, red.) have launched a new campaign to challenge the World Bank. The campaign launch coincided with the start of negotiations for further funding from rich country governments for the Bank.
The NGOs backing the campaign were calling for European governments to press the Bank to accept specific reforms or to channel their funding elsewhere. The reforms are in the areas of economic policy reform and fossil fuel lending.
Representatives of several of the organisations were in Paris last Monday (5 March) to stage a symbolic action near the French Ministry of Finance. This involved large (150cm) cheques, payable by European governments to the World Bank only if the Bank reforms its harmful lending policies.
The campaigners were telling governments to threaten to withhold funds from the World Bank unless specific changes are made to policy and practice.
Their campaign “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is” came as representatives of all European governments started negotiations on the replenishment (genopfyldning) of the World Banks soft loan window – IDA -, which happens every three years.
69 NGOs from 16 European countries, including ActionAid and Christian Aid, accused the World Bank of applying a misguided development model, undermining countries ability to chart their own development paths and often contributing to worsening poverty and environmental degradation.
They pointed out that European governments are being asked to provide some 60 per cent of funding to the World Bank and urged the governments to demand an end to economic policy conditionality and a phasing out of spending on fossil fuel operations. Over the last year, several European governments – notably the UK and Norway – have threatened to reduce Bank funding.
The Bank should allow recipient governments to choose their own policies and scale up support for renewable energy, they said.
Nuria Molina, policy and advocacy officer at the European Network on Debt and Development said: – Many studies show that the World Bank continues to impose economic policy conditions and that these are often very harmful. This must end.
Martin Gordon, Christian Aid’s International Campaigns Manager, said: “We cannot accept the glacial pace of change at the World Bank. It is time for European governments to put their money where their mouth is, or international commitments will not be met”.
Jesse Griffiths, policy officer at ActionAid said: – This is a real opportunity for progressive European governments to force the Banks hand and make it cede control over economic policy-making to the poor countries it is supposed to be helping.
The full statement “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is – A challenge to European governments to leverage reform at the World Bank” can be seen here:
The role of the World Bank
At the current rate of progress, the international community will not achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Significant responsibility for this must rest with the World Bank, the worlds largest development institution.
The Bank has presided over the application of a misguided development model that has undermined countries ability to chart their own development paths, and has often contributed to worsening poverty and to environmental degradation in many of the world’s poorest countries.
Damaging economic policy conditions
The Bank is still imposing economic policy prescriptions on developing countries as a condition of their development lending. These conditions give developing countries little possibility to choose the economic and other policies they think best to reduce poverty, and they have often worsened the situation.
The Bank should immediately stop tying their aid and loans to particular economic policies, such as privatisation, liberalisation and restricting public spending on health and education, and should allow countries to make their own policy choices.
Funding fossil fuel development
The climate change emergency requires action before it is too late. The poorest are being hit hardest and hit now. The World Bank remains one of the main public financiers of fossil fuel development which contributes massively to global warming and is destined largely for Northern consumption and multinational profits.
The Bank should immediately start a complete phase out of financing for fossil fuel operations and oil aid, and instead should significantly scale-up support for renewable energy and energy efficiency.
European governments can make a difference
European governments are the worlds largest aid donors and the main donors to the World Bank Group. They also have a very prominent presence on the board of the World Bank. In 2007, the World Banks funders, including European governments are reviewing their financial contributions.
We urge European governments to use these contributions to leverage reform at the World Bank during the current funding “replenishment” round, to ensure that the Bank becomes an agency that acts in the interests of the worlds poorest people.
If the Bank fails to stop using economic policy conditions and continues to push fossil fuels, these European governments should consider permanently redirecting funding away from the Bank through other mechanisms which respect country ownership and take the necessary leadership in addressing climate change.
A call to immediate action
European governments should act now. We call upon all European civil society organisations, trade unions, religious groups and business actors to raise their voice with us. The time has come to seriously question and change the role and policies of the World Bank. Change cannot wait.
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