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Poverty and Security
At the IMF and World Bank Group annual meetings in October, World Bank president James Wolfensohn (MBA 59) declared that along with its fight against terror, the global community must also address the longer-term issues of poverty, frustration, and lack of hope that contribute to an insecure world (Los Angeles Times, October 4, 2004).
Wolfensohn noted that, in his ten years at the Banks helm, he has met with poor people in more than 100 countries and found that they want security, but they define it differently than we do. For them, it is not about concrete barriers and military force. For them, it is a chance to escape poverty. He cited a World Bank study in which 60,000 poor people in sixty countries were asked about poverty. The $1 a day or $2 a day that they live on was almost the last thing mentioned. What mattered most was a voice, an ability to contribute to their future, women not wanting to be beaten up, opportunity for their kids (USA Today, September 27, 2004).
Democracy and transparency are not always transferable because of cultural and historical factors, Wolfensohn asserted, but they are probably not the only system that works. He pointed to China, whose predictable and decent government structures, while not wholly democratic, can lead to an effective result.
Asked what the West doesnt understand about Islam, Wolfensohn said, When youre in a conflict, typecasting happens. But there is a richness in Islam, and there are a lot of people in the Islamic world who are as anxious about peace as all of us.
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