Ghana: Social Watch Report Calls for the Separation of Multilateral And Bilateral Aid
Source: Reality of Aid
The 2006 Social Watch report has suggested the separation of bilateral and multilateral arrangement for development as a first step towards reforms for financial independence for poor countries.
The 262 page report prepared annually by a coalition of international Non-Governmental Organizations which was first launched in Singapore in September and relaunched recently in Ghana said "it is up to sovereign nations to enter into bilateral agreements on debt financing but these should be kept outside the multilateral system."
The report dubbed Impossible Architecture also suggested that consideration should be given to pooling and allocating aid through a development fund placed under the United Nations and run by a competent secretariat without day-to day interference from its contributors.
This according to the report means ceding the International Development Association IDA from the World Bank and the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PGRF) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Though the amount involved is quite small, the report says the impact on the governance of these institutions could be important.
Already the European Union has announced its intention to create a trust fund to disburse European aid to Africa without depending on the World Bank. Their argument is that European money should be spent according to European policies and since their influence in the World Bank is not that much, they would like to disburse their own funds.
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