WB upbeat on record funds for poor nations

JAKARTA – The World Bank’s president said yesterday he was confident it would raise record funds to aid the poorest countries.

Robert Zoellick also said he believed the United States would still significantly contribute to the International Development Association (IDA), the bank’s lending arm, despite an economic slowdown. Donor countries are gathering in Berlin this week to extract sufficient promises to ensure that future lending by the IDA to poor countries is not undermined.Every three years the World Bank conducts a fund-raising campaign around its richer members to determine its funding for development projects in poor countries.The IDA raised US$32,5 billion in a fund-raising round completed in February 2005.”I want to make sure that we do better than 32,5 billion and I believe we will, but I can’t tell you yet how much for sure,” Zoellick said in Jakarta.Despite a slowing economy, a housing crisis and a falling dollar in the United States, Zoellick said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had assured him that Washington would make a significant contribution to the IDA.”Their challenge really is more currency, in that the contributions are done in something called Special Drawing Right.So if your currency is depreciated you have to pay more dollars to get a Special Drawing Right,” he said.Zoellick has challenged donors to ratchet up aid for IDA, announcing in October the bank would double its own contribution to US$3,5 billion, with the help of profits from its private-sector lending unit.He has also left the door open for a role for the private sector to help fund IDA.He said it was encouraging that former IDA borrowers such as Turkey, Egypt and South Korea had agreed to contribute.He said he was also trying to get other developing countries, such as China, to contribute to broaden the base of aid for the future.Nampa-ReutersDonor countries are gathering in Berlin this week to extract sufficient promises to ensure that future lending by the IDA to poor countries is not undermined.Every three years the World Bank conducts a fund-raising campaign around its richer members to determine its funding for development projects in poor countries.The IDA raised US$32,5 billion in a fund-raising round completed in February 2005.”I want to make sure that we do better than 32,5 billion and I believe we will, but I can’t tell you yet how much for sure,” Zoellick said in Jakarta.Despite a slowing economy, a housing crisis and a falling dollar in the United States, Zoellick said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had assured him that Washington would make a significant contribution to the IDA.”Their challenge really is more currency, in that the contributions are done in something called Special Drawing Right.So if your currency is depreciated you have to pay more dollars to get a Special Drawing Right,” he said.Zoellick has challenged donors to ratchet up aid for IDA, announcing in October the bank would double its own contribution to US$3,5 billion, with the help of profits from its private-sector lending unit.He has also left the door open for a role for the private sector to help fund IDA.He said it was encouraging that former IDA borrowers such as Turkey, Egypt and South Korea had agreed to contribute.He said he was also trying to get other developing countries, such as China, to contribute to broaden the base of aid for the future.Nampa-Reuters