by Jean-Louis Sarbib, Ian Johnson and Gobind Nankani
International Herald TribuneNovember 17, 2001
The voices of extremism find a responsive echo when the promised benefits of globalization remain elusive for many of the world's poorest citizens. Poverty in the midst of plenty is the challenge of our times. It was true before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. It is even more so today.
Economic and development ministers from rich and poor nations meet in Ottawa this weekend. As they seek remedies for the global economic slowdown, it is essential that long-term concerns and the plight of the poorest remain firmly at the top of the agenda.
To fight poverty in a globalizing economy, a new approach to development is emerging. It builds on the many lessons of the 1980s. While growth remains essential, its quality matters.
The growth that creates jobs, sends children to school, builds community health centers, empowers the poor to become the actors of their own development, nurtures the environment and spreads benefits equitably requires broad participation and listening to many voices, especially those of the poorest. Quality growth is an effective way to prevent conflicts and to rebuild societies and economies torn by war and civil strife.
The programs leading to such results cannot be imposed from outside. They require, more than ever, partnerships to support comprehensive development strategies defined under the leadership of the affected countries and communities.
We have also learned that the absence of proper regulation induces fragility and inequity; that institutions matter and must be designed to make markets work for the poor.
We now understand that while the positive impact of policy change takes time to materialize, negative social consequences are often immediate. Thus, special care must be taken to put into place safety nets. It is particularly true in times of crises, when people at the bottom tend to suffer the most negative consequences. As the world fights terrorism, we need to remember the lessons of an earlier era and resist short-term rewards that pay few long-term development dividends. The new approach is working. From Bangladesh to Bosnia, from Benin to Indonesia, from Morocco to Colombia and in countries and regions emerging from conflict, empowered communities are using resources - theirs and those committed by their development partners - to build their own future. Working at the grass roots with governments and nongovernmental organizations brings immediate and tangible benefits to the neediest, while policy changes take time to work their way through the economy. Nowhere is the change clearer than in Africa, where the World Bank and the international community are poised to support the New Africa Initiative - an effort to enlist international support for a program designed by African leaders who recognize that ultimate success rests with Africa. As the world's attention turns to the global economy and the war against terrorism, the challenge of Africa must remain a key priority.
Economic growth remains the fuel of poverty reduction. Productivity gains, sharing of research and technology and successful integration in the global economy facilitate growth. As world trade slows and industrial economies battle a recession, it is important to remember this lesson and to open the richest markets to exports of the poorest countries.
As improved agricultural productivity becomes even more of an imperative in regions where rural poverty dominates, the benefits of science and technology must be made available to poor women farmers. Information and communications technologies must spread their benefits to the most remote regions of our planet. Harnessing the benefits of science and technology to rekindle and accelerate growth should not be sacrificed to short-term concerns about narrowly defined intellectual property rights. Research on malaria and HIV/AIDS must become and remain a shared priority and be seen as a global public good.
Growth, equity, participation, clean governance and performance should be at the forefront of the agenda in Ottowa this weekend. They can make a significant contribution to improving the lives of millions, restoring hope and creating a more secure world. The writers, vice presidents of the World Bank, contributed this comment to the International Herald Tribune.
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