HUMANITARIAN organisation ActionAid has called for the overhaul of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank institutions saying they do not serve African interests.
Zimbabwe is one of the countries in the Global South affected by huge debts from the IMF and the World Bank.
In an exclusive report published this week, ActionAid said colonial institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank had no place in the 21st century and unless they are overhauled, they should be abolished.
It said the IMF and World Bank do not represent the needs of the majority in the world, having been created by Global North colonising countries when most of Global South was not independent.
“As the institutions prepare to commemorate their 80th anniversary at their upcoming meetings in Washington, ActionAid is concerned about their potential to spin a misleading narrative that obscures their decades of negative impacts on developing countries.
“Unless there are fundamental reforms to the institutions, it is time to abolish the IMF and World Bank and develop a new international financial architecture,” the report reads.
ActionAid also called on the IMF to stop using the debt crisis to enforce austerity measures on Global South countries, saying all debt negotiations should be taken over by a new UN democratic and representative body.
“In addition, ActionAid also wants developing countries to get equal voting power in the IMF and World Bank. The current governance structure is largely an inheritance from the colonial era and does not serve the best interests of countries in the Global South”
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Global economic justice lead at ActionAid International, Roos Saalbrink, said it was time for a significant overhaul or abolition of these institutions.
“They were created by wealthy nations in the aftermath of World War II, and they historically wield disproportionate power over global economic policies,” Saalbrink said.
“Their influence has often been detrimental to the interests of marginalised communities, women and minorities, particularly in the Global South.
“The many ‘reviews’ and new ‘strategies’, such as the IMF ones on climate and gender, play a role in green washing and pink washing the institutions’ role in maintaining the status quo.”
ActionAid International secretary-general Arthur Larok said the institutions have for long imposed a one-size-fits-all approach that has facilitated the exploitation of Africa.
“Their outdated neoliberal economic policies have stalled our progress and deepened inequality across the continent. As the IMF and World Bank meet in Washington, DC, we urge them to either focus on real change or get out of the way!
“The Global South needs policies that support homegrown industries, drive sustainable development, and guarantee quality public services for all,” he said.
Larok said it was not the time for the institutions to tweak their approach or attempt to justify failed policies.
