2 October 2008
Read all the headlines concerning the international financial institutions from the past week.
African Development Bank:
Africa urged to incorporate climate change into development strategies, September 26, 2008 (Joy Online) - Mr Youssouf Ouedraogo, Special Adviser to the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), has urged African countries to consider incorporating climate change and alternative energy resources into their development agendas to safeguard the environment and future of the continent.
Asian Development Bank:
ADB lends 250 mln dlrs to Philippines for policy reforms, September 30, 2008 (AFP website) - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Wednesday it is extending a loan of 250 million dollars to the Philippine government, which is trying to implement a number of economic reforms.
President of Asian Development Bank to visit Azerbaijan, September 27, 2008 (Azeri Press Agency) - The Asian Development Bank’s Office in Baku said about 140 representatives from Azerbaijan, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and other countries are due to join the event.
Bank of the South:
Chavez says US crisis could bring down oil, September 30, 2008 (IHT website) - Chavez said leaders will accelerate economic integration efforts including the Bank of the South, a regional state development bank he said has been held up for "bureaucratic reasons."
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development:
Bank ploughs cash into Tajik waste project, October 2, 2008 (A development bank has loaned millions of dollars into improving the waste infrastructure - and environment - in the capital of Tajikistan.
Inter-American Development Bank:
IDB, World Bank Hail Americas Free Trade Initiative, September 30, 2008 (WB website) - The World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) today welcomed an initiative launched by 12 countries in the Americas to promote free trade in the Western Hemisphere.
International Monetary Fund:
IMF hails US attempt to 'put out the fire', By FT reporters, September 29, 2008 (FT website) - Dominique Strauss-Kahn, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, yesterday welcomed the $700bn US rescue plan as a priority in the fight to "put out the fire" engulfing the banking system.
IMF, again, September 26, 2008 (FT website) - One acronym that has been notably absent, so far, from the global financial crisis is the IMF. The International Monetary Fund has drawn up a code of conduct for sovereign wealth funds and issued to profligate countries mild rebukes that have, for the most part, been ignored.
IMF leaves door open for hesitant Albania, September 26, 2008 (Guardian website) - The International Monetary Fund told Albania on Friday it was ready to discuss future cooperation if Albania changes its mind after its government signalled it was not keen on a new monitoring deal.
World Bank:
Rakesh Mohan to takeover as World Bank ED, October 2, 2008 (MSN website) - New Delhi: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan appears set to move to Washington as executive director of the World Bank next month.
World Bank approves $1.8 bln lending to Croatia, September 30, 2008 (Alertnet website) - The World Bank on Tuesday approved a new four-year $1.8 billion lending program for Croatia to support the country's quest for EU accession.
World Bank says malaria may affect Nigeria’s drive to realise MDGs, September 30, 2008 (APA website) - The president of the World Bank Group, Robert Zoellick, has said that malaria may impede Nigeria’s drive to realise the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015.
Washington's waning way, By Alan Beattie, September 29, 2008 (FT website) - Debating with Al Gore in the presidential election eight years ago, George W. Bush defined a new, humbler attitude towards the rest of the world. "I'm not so sure the role of the United States is to go around the world and say, 'this is the way it has got to be'," he said. "I just don't think it's the role of the United States to walk into a country and say: 'we do it this way, so should you'."
Doing Business as Usual, World Bank Rewards Worst Worker Record, by James Parks, September 28, 2008 (AFL-CIO blog) - For the second year in a row, the World Bank has rated a former Soviet republic as “having the best worker protection” in the world. The top-rated country this year is Belarus, a country where labor practices are so bad the International Labor Organization (ILO) has condemned the country’s dictators for curtailing workers’ rights and the European Union withdrew trade preferences.
World Bank collects 6.1 bln dlrs in pledges for climate funds, September 27, 2008 (AFP website) - The World Bank said Friday that 10 nations had pledged more than 6.1 billion dollars to its new investment funds aimed at helping developing countries fight global warming.
Loans success exaggerated at World Bank, By Chris Giles, September 27, 2008 (FT website) - The management of the World Bank tended last year to inflate the reported success of its lending to the poorest countries while the organisation was consumed by wrangles over the leadership of Paul Wolfowitz, its president until June 2007.