DEVELOPMENT: Report says Fix Policies to Prevent More Famine

With more than 10 million people in southern Africa facing the threat of severe famine, a report is warning of more to come unless better policies are developed to attack persistent poverty.

DEVELOPMENT-EAST TIMOR: Advice, Warnings Greet Newest IMF Member

Two very distinct welcomes have greeted the newest member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF): free-market advice from the Fund and World Bank and warnings from civil society groups about who controls its money.

ECONOMY: Corrupt Practices Continue in Developing World-Critics

The multinational firms recently fingered for corrupt practices in the United States may be practising similar operations on a larger scale in developing countries, say long-time corporate watchdogs.

DEVELOPMENT: Bank, Critics Disagree Over Inspection Panel

Non-compliance is the biggest hurdle facing an investigative body aimed at protecting locals from potentially harmful projects funded by one of the world's largest multilateral banks, government and bank officials here say.

ECONOMY-BRAZIL: Growing Debt Could Signal Crisis – Analysts

Brazil faces a high chance of defaulting on its debts by the end of 2003, a threat that could turn Latin America's largest economy into anther crisis-ridden Argentina, say analysts.

ECONOMY: African Initiative Debated Ahead of G-8 Endorsement

When heads of state of the Group of Eight (G-8) powers meet in Canada next week, they will launch a plan much touted as fresh approach to African development. In the view of some analysts, however, the leaders will simply be unleashing more of the conditions that have spawned economic regression in Africa.

FINANCE: Mauritania Wins Debt Relief, Outlook Remains Guarded

Mauritania's creditors have agreed to write off 1.1 billion dollars of the country's external debt servicing over time, on condition that the government in Nouakchott follow World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) prescriptions for economic restructuring.

DEVELOPMENT: Uganda Dam Foes Welcome World Bank Pause

Groups opposing a dam project in Uganda say a World Bank decision to put off deciding on funding for the venture gives affected people time to study it and promote alternatives. The project's foes here add they remain committed to stopping it outright.

DEVELOPMENT: Aid Workers, IMF Trade Blows Over Malawi Famine

Starving Malawians are forced to eat grass seeds, banana roots, and tree leaves because the International Monetary Fund (IMF) gave their government bad advice, according to aid workers.

DEVELOPMENT: World Bank Wants Cash for Primary Education Plan

The World Bank has unveiled another plan to educate the planet's poorest children but says it will require billions of dollars from rich nations and some concessions from developing countries.

RIGHTS: World Bank Weakens Standards on Aboriginals – Critics

The World Bank is back-pedaling on its pledges to protect indigenous peoples from the harmful effects of the projects it finances, say the lender's critics.

DEVELOPMENT: O’Neill Enlightened But Unchanged After Africa Trip

A high-profile trip to Africa by U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill may have introduced the U.S. official to scenes of African poverty, but it produced no immediate changes in U.S. foreign development policy.

DEVELOPMENT: Activists say World Bank Water Plan a Backwards Step

Policies suggested for the World Bank's lending programme for water could aggravate pollution, poverty and displacement of local people as well as cost more money, says a critique by international advocacy groups.

DEVELOPMENT: African Activists Call for Economic Freedom

African development activists accused Western powers Wednesday of intentionally seeking to harm home-grown development plans and said they wanted the U.S. Congress to use its clout to end the practice.

DEVELOPMENT: NGOs Urge U.S. Treasury Chief to Revise Africa Stance

Anti-debt campaigners are pressing U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill to adjust U.S. policies towards African development as he embarks on a 10-day visit to some of the most impoverished nations in the sub-Saharan region.

FINANCE: Lenders Cooked the Books on Uganda Dam, Critics Charge

The World Bank tampered with economic feasibility studies to justify millions of dollars in funding for a large dam in Uganda, said an anti-dam group.

TRADE: Opponents Unite to Decry U.S. Farm Subsidies

Proponents of free trade and fair trade alike decried on Monday legislation giving U.S. farmers 190 billion dollars in subsidies over the coming 10 years, saying the move would hurt poor farmers around the world.

ECONOMY: Activists Seek to Keep East Timor Debt-Free

Debt-relief campaigners say they hope East Timor's donors and creditors will promise enough aid this week to keep the nascent country free from sovereign debt.

DEVELOPMENT: Activists Probe Ghana Water Sell-Off

International advocacy groups have sent observers to Ghana to probe complaints by civil society groups there that privatisation policies promoted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank are hampering access to water in the African country.

FINANCE: Debt Relief Programme Faces Post-Conflict Test

û A high-profile debt relief programme for the world's poorest countries is mired in implementation problems and faces tougher times ahead as it moves to deal with conflict-riddled countries, say World Bank officials.

POLITICS: Saudis, U.S., Stress Mutual Interest in Oil Regime

Strategic relations with the United States and an ambitious programme of economic restructuring prevent Saudi Arabia from using its vast oil production as a weapon to pressure Israel and its supporters, say Saudi and U.S. officials.