Globalization:

IMF / World Bank
Development Issues

The IMF and World Bank have come under fire in recent years for contributing to the endemic poverty that exists in the developing world. Debt payments force countries to abandon much-needed social welfare programs. In addition, the IMF and World Bank force privatization of everything from energy to water to education to health care, and often fund projects that destroy local ecosystems. 50 Years is Enough, the U.S. Network for Global Economic Justice, says the following about the IMF and World Bank:

"Many poor countries must devote huge portions of their national budgets to paying back foreign creditors -- often for loans that were made to or for dictators, wasteful military spending or boondoggle projects. The poor countries of sub-Saharan Africa, for example, owe more than $200 billion in foreign debt -- three times more than they earn annually in exports. About 20 percent of sub-Saharan African countries' export income (not counting South Africa) goes to service foreign debt.

A huge part of poor country economies must be devoted to producing goods for export - with the resultant income sent back out of the economy and not available for domestic use, including for such important domestic needs as healthcare, education and infrastructure.

[…]

The IMF and the World Bank should use their existing resources to fully cancel the debts owed them by the poorest countries -- without any structural adjustment conditions attached. This is something they are perfectly able to do, as Harvard Professor Jeffrey Sachs and many others have shown."

- 50 Years Is Enough [source]

For more information about this and other issues, visit 50 Years Is Enough on the Internet.