| Special guest of the month |
I N T E R V I E W
Mr. James Wolfensohn
President of the World Bank
The President of the World Bank, Mr. James Wolfensohn, has stated that he wishes to intensify dialogue with MPs, at a time when the economic outlook for the poor countries is anything but encouraging.
Q: In early 1999, you launched a major initiative called the Comprehensive Development Framework (CDF). What is it and what have been the major achievements and obstacles to its implementation?
J. Wolfensohn: The Comprehensive Development Framework (CDF) is a means by which countries can manage knowledge and resources to design and implement strategies for economic development and poverty reduction. It is centered on a long-term vision -- prepared by the country through a participatory national consultation process -- that balances good macroeconomic and financial management with sound social, structural and human policies. The CDF, however, is not a blueprint. It is voluntary, and each country must decide on, and own, its priorities and programs. In order to ensure the most effective use of human and financial resources, the CDF emphasizes partnerships between government (at the national, state and municipal levels), civil society, the private sector, and external assistance agencies. It encourages coordination to improve efficiency and coherence in the use of financial flows and takes advantage of synergies among development partners. In addition, as the international community has increasingly come to recognize, partnership and coordination of efforts can enhance the capacity of governments to manage foreign development assistance.
In terms of the successes, I would highlight three things. On the one hand, we are supporting the
implementation of this approach on a pilot basis in 13 countries from around the world and it is evident that the CDF process has unleashed some of these societies' positive forces by including groups that have found it difficult heretofore to participate in the decision-making processes. Secondly, the CDF process has
offered opportunities for improving coordination among donor agencies in the pilot countries, thus reducing the inefficiencies and duplication of development assistance. Finally the Bank has developed together
with the IMF a new approach to working with our low-income countries: the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). The PRSP is a specific output of a CDF or CDF-like process and is required as a condition
for low income countries to obtain debt relief under the Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) debt initiative, and will form the basis for Bank and Fund programs in low income countries. Thus, the PRSP can be thought of as a tool that the countries can use to implement the CDF and, indeed, countries using the CDF as their
development framework (such as Ghana, Uganda and Bolivia) have been at the forefront of those successfully preparing PRSPs.
Probably the greatest challenge of the CDF is its sustainability in the light of internal political
changes in the countries where it is being implemented. Indeed, in some of the countries in which the CDF is being piloted (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire) both internal and external conflict have
stifled the rate of progress that had been accomplished by the CDF process. If appropriately implemented, the CDF should help a country's economic development agenda withstand the political changes coming out of ordinary electoral cycles. I believe this will be one of the major challenges as we move forward.
Q: Later in 2000, you will issue the World Development Report. What are its major points and what is its significance?
J.W.:The World Development Report 2000/2001 to be released later this year lays about the strategic actions that we believe are required to attack poverty in the first decades of the new millennium. Such actions need to address the challenges posed by the experiences of the 1990s, among others: the lack of progress in reducing poverty outside East Asia; the double-edged impact of globalization; the devastating impact of conflict; and the unequalizing processes which have accompanied the transition of many formerly centrally planned countries into market economies.
The WDR 2000/2001 takes a broad view of poverty, going beyond the now conventional dimensions of income/consumption and education/health to include risk/vulnerability and voicelessness/powerlessness. The report sees outcomes as determined not only by economic processes but also by social and political factors - the norms, values and institutions which have a key role in the economic development process. As part of the preparation of the report, a 23-country participatory study was undertaken called Consultations with the Poor, which included consultations with over 20,000 poor people, and a review of 75 participatory poverty studies recently completed. This report, by using the very voice of the poor, reveals the many dimensions of poverty and depravation: the deep concerns over the failure of institutions, often oppressive in nature, and the powerlessness, insecurity and vulnerability, and lack of opportunities for economic advancement.
The WDR 2000/2001 confronts these concerns by proposing that poverty be attacked on three fronts:
- ensuring empowerment of the poor by increasing their participation and voice in decision-making and managing the growth of inequalities;
- providing security against shocks at the household and national level and protection for those who are unable to share in the benefits of growth; and
- creating opportunities,by putting in place the conditions for sustainable economic growth, to provide the material for poverty reduction
The messages coming from the persons interviewed are truly powerful. I recommend the IPU members to take a look at the recently published summary of the consultations titled Voices of the Poor: can anyone hear us?which can be bought through the World Bank's external web site (www.worldbank.org).
Q: You have stated that, with a background of world inequality, the World Bank has been 'rethinking' development. What do you mean?
J.W.: Inequality appears to have increased both among and within nations. While some key social indicators have seen a very significant improvement over the last two decades (infant mortality, life expectancy, primary school enrollment), the gap between the richest and poorest, both between countries and within a country, has continued to rise. During the 1990s, despite a significant growth in global economic output, the number of people in extreme poverty (incomes of less than $1 a day) was approximately the same in 1998 as in 1987, and the share of the population in extreme poverty declined only modestly, from 28 percent in 1987 to 24 percent in 1998. This limited improvement in poverty reflects slow growth in some regions but, to a much greater extent, a worsening of income distribution in countries with the largest share of the extreme poor. On current trends, much of the developing world is unlikely to meet the international development goal of halving extreme poverty by 2015. The rise in inequality has occurred during a period where many of the poorest countries in the world remain essentially marginalized from the overall rapid expansion of global output and trade.
Increasing global inequality and insufficient progress in poverty reduction has given impetus to an ongoing reevaluation of the World Bank's approach to development. We have learned that for reform programs to be effective, they must be holistic, participatory and unequivocally supported by the governments that will implement them. A second major lesson learned by the Bank during the last few years is the importance of a sound social and structural framework to complement solid macroeconomic and financial management. The need for a strong institutional framework, good and clean government, a sound legal and judicial system as well as a stable financial system, are of central importance to achieve equitable and sustainable growth.
In light of these factors, the Bank has undertaken significant changes in its policies for supporting development in our client countries. Under the Comprehensive Development Framework, the Bank has spent considerable effort in improving local participation in the design of reform programs and promoting a holistic, long-term view of economic development, with poverty reduction at its core. The enormity of the poverty problem requires a coordinated approach and forming effective partnerships among the donor community. While some of these elements were present in the Bank's support of reform programs in the past, the CDF represents a decided shift in emphasis towards ownership, participation and governance issues, and a determined effort to make poverty reduction the central focus of our work. In addition, I would like to highlight the fact that the Bank is reinforcing programs aimed at promoting community driven development (CDD). CDD is based on the principle that community organizations should have the authority and control over decision and resources of Bank programs. While the amounts of each individual program are not very large, CDD has the potential to make allocation of resources more responsive to the needs of the poor and to lead to more sustainable and equitable outcomes. CDD will also help poor communities develop their own management skills and improve their negotiating capacity to deal with government, the private sector, other development agencies and civil society.
Q: You have recently addressed the meeting of UNCTAD X in Bangkok. What message did you bring back to your headquarters? What changes, if any, did you perceive since Seattle?
J.W.: The UNCTAD X conference rejuvenated and re-empowered the organization. UNCTAD's Bangkok Declaration placed its strategic focus on the integrated treatment of 'fairer' development and the interrelated issues in the areas of trade, finance, investment, and technology. It is clear to me that the meeting highlighted convergence in views regarding development. There was a broad consensus among the principal speakers at UNCTAD X that trade is a key factor with respect to the question of poverty. There was also a growing recognition that the least developed countries should count on expanded access to markets for export goods in which they are competitive. At the same time, the many difficulties of integrating the least developed countries into the world economy were clearly recognized. To promote such integration, many of the speakers called for using development assistance to the poorer countries for supporting the required infrastructure, technical capacity, regulatory framework and institutions. The World Bank is working closely with other multilateral agencies in the implementation of this agenda.
In addition, as Mr. Ricupero emphasized, the view that an international rules-based system has significant beneficial aspects for developing countries seemed to be widely shared at the conference, helping reestablish support for progress at the WTO. There was nevertheless significant diversity of views with respect to a new round of multilateral trade negotiations. While support was built for moving to a new round, a number of countries expressed their belief that, before any such round begins, there is a need to follow through on the implementation on the Uruguay round agreements.
We will be discussing further the links between trade and development at the upcoming Spring Meeting of the Development Committee with Ministers of Finance and Ministers of Development Cooperation.
Q: What is your message to members of Parliament?
J.W.: Let me first say how important it is for the World Bank Group to increase our dialog with members of Parliament from all over the world. At a time when the prospects for poverty in the developing world do not look bright, it is essential for agencies such as the World Bank to engage in dialogue with members of Parliament to look for common solutions to the challenge of poverty reduction. Recent World Bank estimates show that, under a 'business as usual' scenario of continuing slow growth and increasing inequalities in the developing countries, by 2008 we will see no reduction in the 1.2 billion people that today live under $1 a day. Indeed, current trends indicate that it will be almost impossible to meet the targets set by the Development Assistance Committee to halve poverty by 2015. Members of Parliament from both developing and developed countries play a critical role in the fight against these trends in poverty.
On the one hand, members of Parliament from developing countries need to be an essential partner in the design and implementation of any long-term national development strategy. As the CDF highlights, the goal of poverty reduction and sustainable economic growth requires a long-term perspective, far longer than the period between elections for the executive power, and requires ownership and participation. Parliaments, as representatives of the people, play an essential role in ensuring that the goals defined in any national development strategy stay at the center of any government's agenda, across party lines and political tendencies.
On the other, Parliaments from the more developed countries hold the key to allocating resources to be transferred to the developing countries. While some countries have kept up their commitment to the poorest countries in terms of economic assistance (notably the Nordic countries and the Netherlands), official development assistance from the OECD countries has dropped from 0.33% of GDP in 1990 to 0.23% in 1998. This is far below the figure of 0.7% advocated by the United Nations. This drop is particularly disappointing as it has coincided with a long period of prosperity in most developed countries. At a time when national budget pressures seem to make development assistance an easy target, members of Parliament should understand that the returns of any money invested in our fight against poverty and inequality are unique: a more stable world, a better environment, increased economic growth and trade and reduced infant mortality, among others.
The challenges are indeed great but we have the opportunity to work together to set a course that will lead to a world of greater peace, equity and security.
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IIIrd CSCM in Marseilles
At the invitation of the French Parliament, the IPU will hold in Marseilles, from 30 March to 3 April 2000, its Third Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM). The Conference will be chaired by Mr. Michel Vauzelle, Executive President of the French IPU Group and President of the Provence - Alpes - Côte d'Azur regions. The CSCM is the only process in which all sovereign States of the Mediterranean - Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, Croatia, Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Malta, Monaco, Morocco, Slovenia, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tunisia, Turkey and Yugoslavia - and two States with close economic, political and strategic ties with the Mediterranean - Jordan and Portugal - participate on equal terms.
According to the President of the Third CSCM, Mr. Michel Vauzelle, "the Marseilles CSCM is faced with a twofold challenge. First, it is bringing together all the peoples of the Mediterranean, proud peoples, each with a great culture and each resolved to preserve the freedom of their culture in the face of the phenomenon of globalisation. Globalisation, as its name indicates, carries the risk of imposing a single culture on the world as a whole. Secondly, we have every reason, in the interests of greater freedom and strength, to ensure that the Mediterranean is an area of peace and that the causes of tensions are eliminated, especially in the Middle East. It is also important to develop the North-South partnership, not to assert the superiority of the North over the South but in such a way as to promote large-scale support by the North for respect for the cultural identities of the States of the South. Such assistance would be conducive to economic and social development and hence to peace for the peoples of the southern Mediterranean".
All in all, the President of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Region views the year 2000 "as a symbolic year that should constitute a milestone in the Mediterranean, given the prospects for peace in the Middle East and the Balkans. The results of the Third CSCM may offer guidance for the Barcelona Conference to be held in Marseilles in November 2000 on the initiative of France".
| Do women change Politics? |
Men reply
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) welcomes the fact that several major political parties, such as the RPR in France or the CDU in Germany, are now headed by women. The world organisation of parliaments has for many years been working to promote partnership between men and women as one of the pillars of democracy. In the study "Politics: Women's Insight" (presented on 6 March 2000 at UN Headquarters in New York, see press release No. 92), the IPU gave the floor to 187 women from 65 countries, from a very wide range of political leanings and backgrounds. Yet men have not been left out, as can be seen from the following replies from Speakers and Members of Parliament to the question: "Has women's arrival in politics changed the political language and priorities?
Mr. Wolfgang Thierse, President of the German Bundestag
I feel that women have a different style. They are not better men; rather, they have a different style and perhaps a more natural and more concrete passion for the preservation of human life. This is why I feel that they are less warlike by nature and I feel that this has a positive impact on politics.
Mr. Mélégué Traoré, President of the National Assembly of Burkina Faso
For a long time, politics, because it was primarily about managing power, was men's business. In many countries, the arrival of women led to a radical change in the situation as far as politicians and politics were concerned, even with regard to the way in which politics operates. Henceforth, political actors must deal with much more concrete questions than in the past. In countries like those of Africa, women are first and foremost concerned with everyday life, and for a long time politics was about managing institutions, about ways of perceiving, understanding and running institutions. Yet this is no longer the case at all. I believe that there has also been a tremendous change as far as language is concerned. Now, the aim is to reach out to the other half of the population, which is moreover a bit more than half.
Mr. Juan Duch Martínez, President of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador
It is important to reinforce democracy via women's participation, because women account for over 51% of the population in almost all countries. This encourages us to give them an opportunity to take part in this new-found momentum. In our countries, the participation of women is essential. Women run the home, bring up children and are also active professionally. As in all countries, women work. In all democratic countries, the process of women's participation is under way.
Mr. Guennadi Selznev, President of the State Duma of the Russian Federation
I think that major changes have not yet taken place and that politics is still largely men's business. The only exceptions are the parliaments of the Scandinavian countries, which have many women members, including women presiding officers. At the same time, I am personally convinced that there should be more women parliamentarians. Whether we like it or not, we are becoming more sensitive to world problems and to problems which exist in every country. As mothers, family-keepers, ideal persons to console a child, women can be very productive in dealing with critical
issues.
Mr. Juan Pablo Letelier, Chilean MP
What they contribute is new topics, not so much priorities. Women and some MPs have managed to have new topics placed on the agenda, which make it possible to bring in different points of view. I don't know if this has led to a real change in terms of results, but there is no doubt that subjects such as human rights, family rights, security and women's rights are subjects which men fail to take up, due either to ignorance, jealousy or a misconception of their role in society. Women have managed to include in the agenda problems which affect people in their daily lives: laws on filiation, divorce, family planning, access to medical care, retirement, etc. I feel that there are areas where women have a lot of clout.
The women said
Mrs. Faiza Kéfi, Minister of the Environment, Tunisia
"Parliaments - mirrors of society"
Parliaments are mirrors of society. Accordingly, the more they reflect images of democracy, solidarity, equity, justice and social progress to the world and to their people, the more they consolidate these values in society. And women's arrival in parliaments has had this effect. The fact that we see women involved in the budget preparation process, in the earmarking of funds within the country for the various sectors, the fact that they shape the country's choices, priorities and future prospects has completely changed the situation in our countries and our way of working and has above all changed the nature of the relationship between men and women, which used to be based on power and which is shifting towards a relationship of dialogue, negotiation and cooperation - in short, what we are advocating here at the Union.
Mrs. Mary Robinson, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and former President of Ireland
"Women make a difference"
The arrival of women in politics has very definitely changed the political priorities. I can speak from my own experience in the Irish Parliament, from the European Parliament with which I have a lot of experience, from the linkage that even Speakers, women Speakers of Parliament make. It is necessary to recognise that influence brings responsibility and to try and be practical in making change. I am convinced of this and I don't know any women in any responsible position who wouldn't really agree with me. It has made a difference and what we need is more women in parliament and obviously in trade unions and business, because it does make a difference.
Mrs. Marzieh Hadidchi, Member of the Consultative Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Iran
"Concrete examples"
Now, in our parliament, a law has been passed to address this matter: whenever a woman is divorced, there are special mechanisms to ensure that the dowry is reimbursed at the present rate. Another point: for example, when the mother dies, the insurance premium is paid to the children. This was not the case before.
Mrs. Dalia Rabin-Pelossof, Member of the Knesset, Israel
"They contribute to peace and tolerance"
We need many more women in politics. I can speak about our parliament: women represent only 11 per cent of the membership and this is a record because there were fewer women in politics in Israel before. I am sure women can change the language in politics and make things easier. I believe that women have common sense and can do a lot to further peace, tolerance and democracy all over the world. I am not sure that I can point to a concrete impact, but this is another reason why we need more women in politics.
Mrs. Inaam Abbas, Member of the National Assembly of the Syrian Arab Republic
"Twofold responsibilities"
"It is necessary that women play a political role. There are many of us in government and parliament and in the corporate sector. We have succeeded in all these undertakings, but we still suffer from our twofold family and career responsibilities.
Database on women
On 8 March, the Inter-Parliamentary Union launched a bibliographic database entitled "Women in Politics" at its Web site www.ipu.org This tool is intended to provide an effective means of gearing research and access to bibliographical references to the various aspects of women's participation in political life. To date, "Women in Politics" comprises more than 800 references covering nearly 100 countries.
At the Parliamentary Meeting held in connection with UNCTAD X in Bangkok:
Mr. Supachai Panichpakdi
Parliamentarians - the "eyes, ears and voice and the people"
Taking the floor at the Parliamentary Meeting organised by the IPU and the Thai National Assembly in collaboration with the UNCTAD General Secretariat, the Deputy Minister of Trade of Thailand, Mr. Supachai Panichpakdi (future Director-General of the WTO), stated that "parliamentarians are not only the eyes and ears" but also the "voice" of the people. He stressed the urgent problems of the developing countries which required attention, such as the "need to shape a favourable external environment conducive to reinforcing sound domestic policies". For the future WTO Director-General, "new standards such as those pertaining to labour and the environment must not be used as a new form of protectionism. We need to consider ways and means of ensuring a carefully phased integration of developing countries into the world economy so as to strengthen confidence in the multilateral trading system".
Mr. Rubens Ricupero, Secretary-General of UNCTAD
"Parliamentarians, crucial partners"
"You are among the crucial partners we need to deal with the downsides of globalisation and your support certainly adds a parliamentary dimension to the work of UNCTAD. You are playing an important role in helping the United Nations meet the challenges of international peace and security… You have a valuable role to play to ensure that our agenda at UNCTAD X is effectively pursued by governments".
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