In aid of itself

Big Daddy has finally been forced to sell himself. In what the Washington-based ngo Development Gap termed a "desperate and amateurish attempt at public relations", in May the World Bank (wb) paid to advertise itself through American newspapers.

Washington's plans slashing its international aid has put the International Development Association, the wb's soft-loan arm, in jeopardy. To make its case for continued financial support, the Bank stressed the benefits for the us -- in terms of creating new markets for American goods and more jobs -- in its campaign. It also pointed out that instead of being an aid agency, it was just a bank that "invested in the world".

ngos said the Bank had finally acknowledged the truth about itself: that it was not about aid and development but about developing markets and investment for the us.(ips)