NEW DELHI: Close to 200 individuals and civil society groups, representing a wide range of social movements, campaigns, and grassroots organisations and campaigns in a statement demanded the shutdown of the global financial institutions—the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF)— on its 80th anniversary to pave the way for more democratic, public-spirited institutions.
They called for the creation of a new democratic and decentralised financial system that prioritises sustainability, check climate change and equality.
According to the signed statement, they were concerned that these Brettonwood institutions promoted colonial logic of extraction and exploitation.
“These institutions have facilitated the continuous transfer of wealth from the Global South to the Global North while trapping nations in deep debt and depriving them of sovereignty over their natural resources,” mentioned the statement.
The statement strongly criticises the policies of the World Bank and IMF, which have led to the privatisation of essential public services, including water, electricity, education, healthcare, and transportation.
Further, they said these institutions brought about steep cuts in social protection and welfare programs, labour market deregulation, drastic wage cuts, contractualisation of labour, and the reduction or elimination of food and agriculture subsidies which have resulted in widespread hunger and food insecurity.
“These policies have disproportionately impacted the rural and urban working classes, poor communities, women, small-scale food producers, indigenous peoples, and other marginalised groups,” said Amitanshu Verma, Senior Research Associate, the Centre for Financial Accountability.
“Despite the harm they have caused to societies, economies, and the environment, the World Bank and IMF have remained immune from accountability,” Verma further said.
The civil society groups said that they believe these institutions are beyond reform, as their governance structures and market-driven economic paradigms are too deeply embedded in the status quo to enable meaningful change.