Newsletter from the USA
Sunday, 27 December 2009
Fazle Rashid
Good governance, transparency and accountability and political stability, once the core conditions for the eligibility of funding from the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but relaxed during the height of recession to help survive the sinking countries, will again be reinforced.
The recent trends clearly point to that. The IMF has turned down recession-battered Ukraine's plea for a $2.0billion emergency loan before the next budget because of the country's failure to adopt a " fiscally prudent" budget for 2010 and muster political consensus before the presidential election.
Rumania on the other hand attempted to 'leave behind weeks of political turmoil' when its parliament approved a new centrist government that will seek quickly to restore much needed financial assistance from the IMF. Prime Minister Emil Boc underpinned the urgency of " return to reason and stability." Highhandedness, arrogance and political excesses will no longer win the favour of multilateral as well as bilateral donors.
Meanwhile, President Obama has terminated trade benefits for Guinea, Madagascar and Niger where " democratic progress was threatened by political turmoil". He blamed the countries for failing to meet requirements under African Growth and Opportunity Act. In another development, the Swiss food company Nestle has suspended operations in Zimbabwe, complaining of harrassment after it pulled out of a deal to buy milk from a farm owned by President Mugabe's family. Nestle which was under fire said it was forced to buy milk from the noncontracted suppliers.
IN Europe, Italy's amnesty for tax evaders brought back home a handsome $115 billion in funds and assets held abroad, a record haul for the government. Swiss banks were most of the money was kept accused Rome of intimidating their clients. In a similar case a few months back UBS had provided the US tax regulators IRS with the names of its American clients who has stashed money in it.
And on Global Warming issue, the UN has called for restraint in 'fingerpointing and recriminations' that followed the fractious end of the Copenhagen summit. Mud-slinging will futher damage the chances of a new global warming treaty, Yvo Boer, UN top official for climate change warned. People will be facing each other at the negotiating table next year. It is not good to that on the basis of damaged relations, Boer was quoted as saying.
The beneficieries of the Copenhagen Climate Summit where thousands of people gathered for the 12-day meeting were the hotels, casinos, public transport operators, pubs and dealers in woolen garments. Most of the visitors from the tropical areas were caught off-guard by the snowfall and temperature falling befow the freezing point.
Good governance, transparency and accountability and political stability, once the core conditions for the eligibility of funding from the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but relaxed during the height of recession to help survive the sinking countries, will again be reinforced.
The recent trends clearly point to that. The IMF has turned down recession-battered Ukraine's plea for a $2.0billion emergency loan before the next budget because of the country's failure to adopt a " fiscally prudent" budget for 2010 and muster political consensus before the presidential election.
Rumania on the other hand attempted to 'leave behind weeks of political turmoil' when its parliament approved a new centrist government that will seek quickly to restore much needed financial assistance from the IMF. Prime Minister Emil Boc underpinned the urgency of " return to reason and stability." Highhandedness, arrogance and political excesses will no longer win the favour of multilateral as well as bilateral donors.
Meanwhile, President Obama has terminated trade benefits for Guinea, Madagascar and Niger where " democratic progress was threatened by political turmoil". He blamed the countries for failing to meet requirements under African Growth and Opportunity Act. In another development, the Swiss food company Nestle has suspended operations in Zimbabwe, complaining of harrassment after it pulled out of a deal to buy milk from a farm owned by President Mugabe's family. Nestle which was under fire said it was forced to buy milk from the noncontracted suppliers.
IN Europe, Italy's amnesty for tax evaders brought back home a handsome $115 billion in funds and assets held abroad, a record haul for the government. Swiss banks were most of the money was kept accused Rome of intimidating their clients. In a similar case a few months back UBS had provided the US tax regulators IRS with the names of its American clients who has stashed money in it.
And on Global Warming issue, the UN has called for restraint in 'fingerpointing and recriminations' that followed the fractious end of the Copenhagen summit. Mud-slinging will futher damage the chances of a new global warming treaty, Yvo Boer, UN top official for climate change warned. People will be facing each other at the negotiating table next year. It is not good to that on the basis of damaged relations, Boer was quoted as saying.
The beneficieries of the Copenhagen Climate Summit where thousands of people gathered for the 12-day meeting were the hotels, casinos, public transport operators, pubs and dealers in woolen garments. Most of the visitors from the tropical areas were caught off-guard by the snowfall and temperature falling befow the freezing point.