IMF, World Bank promise new approach

The World Bank and the IMF have said they will work closely with African countries to ensure they benefit from debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, according to Tanzanian newspapers quoting a joint statement released after a summit in Dar es Salaam between the leaders of the two institutions and African heads of state. IMF Managing Director Horst Kohler and World Bank President James Wolfensohn ended their three-day summit with 11 leaders from eastern and southern Africa at the weekend, pledging to lecture less and listen more. Wolfensohn promised to push for an opening of western markets for African goods, saying an improvement of the continent’s export base was crucial to ensure steady growth and reduce poverty. He and Kohler also met Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi on Sunday to discuss economic cooperation, but no date was set for the resumption of IMF aid payments to the country, according to media reports. IMF funds to Kenya were frozen in January due to what the Fund described as “serious setbacks” in the country’s fight against corruption. After the Dar es Salaam meeting, World Bank officials said they were gratified that African leaders had put the fight against AIDS among their top priorities, according to a report on the World Bank website [http://www.worldbank.org/developmentnews/]. In many countries in sub-Saharan Africa one in five of the adult population was infected with HIV or AIDS, and the pandemic had already significantly reduced life expectancy, it said. Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa said regional leaders had recognised the need to promote good governance and peace in order to create a climate conducive to investment and economic well-being, but called for more understanding from donors, the report added.