Uroen, der blev udløst af en frugtsælgers selvmord i Tunesien, er en advarsel til de arabiske ledere om at de er nødt til at bekæmpe arbejdsløshed. Det sagde Verdensbankens præsident, Robert Zoellick.
Zoellick said the suicide and the revolts that subsequently spread across the region underscored the urgent need for reforms that would give people more confidence to work and invest – which would create more jobs.
A World Bank survey found that joblessness was 35-40 percent among youth, he said, which was costing the Arab world a stunning 50 billion US dollar a year in lost economic opportunities.
In his speech in Washington Zoellick said he was trying to ‘help frame’ the coming debate. Rather than focus on purely economic issues, he said that Middle Eastern countries needed to make political changes first to produce better outcomes.
Those changes include working closely with citizen groups to develop and monitor development projects.
Drawing a comparison with the way the Bank used to ignore corruption in developing countries in which it invested, Zoellick said stronger civil societies would act as a check on governments and lead to better economic results.
– I suggest it is now time for the World Bank to examine whether the Bank needs new capabilities or facilities to strengthen the capacity of civil society organizations working on accountability and transparency in service delivery, he said.
In an effort to encourage transparency, Zoellick said the World Bank would not lend directly to countries that did not publish their budgets.
– Our message to our clients, whatever their political system, is that you cannot have successful development without good governance and without the participation of your citizens, he stressed.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
