Headline issues at the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings 2024

The Spring Meetings are being held this week from April 15-20 in Washington, DC  

Climate, developmental goals can push 47 emerging markets & developing economies to insolvency by 2028

IMF and World Bank debt analyses grossly underestimate sustainability problems, finds new report

Trillions more need to be invested if SDGs are to be rescued: UN report

Bold actions needed to scale up SDG investment and reform global financial system

Simply Put: The IMF optimism

Kenya’s William Ruto makes case for Africa at COP28, calls for transformation of global climate finance framework

Many post-colonial countries, especially from Africa, didn’t exist when World Bank, IMF were formed; they should have a say in their …

The World Bank used to cause untold harm — but 30 years ago it started reforming. What went right

The bank supported some projects that were environmentally and socially damaging

COVID-19: UNCTAD predicts $3.4 tln debt for developing countries

Income losses to exceed $220 bln in developing countries, says report 

IMF-World Bank annual meetings 2023: Did talks advance climate justice?

The meetings in Morocco raised urgent questions on financial reform, global debt and the need for climate finance

World bodies release new principles on cost-effective carbon pricing schemes

New World Bank Report states that carbon-pricing schemes are worth US $50 billion

Debt crisis and gap in affordable climate finance in focus at IMF, World Bank meeting

Spring Meetings 2023 took place from April 10-16, 2023 in Washington DC

2022 too short, too far: How did the economy fare last year

Down To Earth recaps the primary environment, health and developmental news from 2022

Poor countries get a say in IMF

Zimbabwe pits currency against food price

COVID-19: Developing countries in unprecedented debt situation

Demand for a ‘global debt deal’ picks up

Justice league for people’s rights

In June 1979, an innovation in the field of law and politics came about in the form of Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal. The idea behind it is …

COP26: Africa’s challenges must steer the climate change conference

Africa carries the heaviest burden of the associated climate change effects

Global annual output growth to drop to 1.9 per cent in 2023, courtesy Ukraine, COVID-19

Growth in India expected to remain strong at 5.8 per cent, albeit lower than 6.4 per cent in 2022, according to new UN report  

The World Bank and IMF are using flawed logic in their quest to do away with the informal sector

What’s put forward as pro-poor interventions in the reports in fact risk actively increasing inequality and further disadvantaging …

Climate disasters are becoming more frequent in west, central Asia than other regions: IMF

West and central Asia are hotspots for climate change due to their geographical setting, says new paper

India’s poverty: There is no end to Surjit Bhalla’s imagination

The IMF executive director has just declared that India was nearly free of extreme poverty in 2020 and inequality was lowest in 40 years due to …

Why African countries are reluctant to take up COVID-19 debt relief

Poor countries know that the debt markets are not favourable to them; they acknowledge the risk of being punished by existing creditors, …

Why opposing the man Trump wants as head of the World Bank might just work

US President Trump’s nomination of his Treasury Undersecretary David Malpass to World Bank should be seen more as an opportunity by African …

India’s declining rural income pulls downs global economic growth: IMF

International Monetary Fund says downgrade of global economy due to India’s dipping growth rates

US dollar’s grip on global markets might be over, warns Goldman

Years of talking about abandoning the US dollar, Russia and China are doing it for real. In the first quarter of 2020, share of dollar in trade …

‘Cancel all debt’: Activists disrupt IMF, World Bank annual meet

Call for reparations as solution for stabilising global economy during debt restructuring panel