• African leaders will be watching closely to see if the major industrialized countries follow through on the commitments made at the London G20 Summit
• Long-stalled governance reforms at the IMF and the World Bank are a key priority
• Reforms should not benefit only the larger, wealthier developing countries represented on the G20 at the expense of the world’s poorest countries
Cape Town, South Africa 10 June 2009 – While the London G20 Summit represented a step towards a more inclusive global governance system, further institutional reforms are badly needed to ensure the interests of low-income countries are adequately represented, according to national leaders and other participants gathered at this year’s World Economic Forum on Africa in Cape Town. In particular, they urged the major industrialized countries to accept long-stalled changes in the governing structures of the IMF and the World Bank.
“A critical lesson from the current crisis is the need for a transformed global financial system,” Jacob Zuma, President of South Africa, said in his opening address. Reform of the so-called Bretton Woods institutions, he added, would “reflect changing economic realities and provide a voice for emerging and developing countries.” The G20, Zuma noted, endorsed such reforms – which would increase the voting power of the lesser developed countries – in its communiqué following the London Summit.
See full Press Release.
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