(no subject)
Food for thought from the World Bank:
The World Bank group is working to bring water to those who need it in third-world countries, or so they claim. Somehow, though, this objective often conflicts with their flagrant desire for profit. Well, of course they need profit. However, their method of getting water to those who needs it includes privatizing the water; in other words, they are making people in poverty pay for their water. The explanation for privatization (from an unofficial interview with the manager of advisory services at the IFC) is that if money is given to a third-world country's government for water, that government is, as often as not, likely to put the money into their swiss bank account soon after getting it, so the people who need the water don't get it at all. The World Bank is even attempting "public-private partnerships" in which people pay part of the money to get their water, and the government pays the other part. Forgive me for asking, but if the people who need the water can't pay the reduced price, how does that help either the World Bank Group or the third-world country?
The World Bank group is working to bring water to those who need it in third-world countries, or so they claim. Somehow, though, this objective often conflicts with their flagrant desire for profit. Well, of course they need profit. However, their method of getting water to those who needs it includes privatizing the water; in other words, they are making people in poverty pay for their water. The explanation for privatization (from an unofficial interview with the manager of advisory services at the IFC) is that if money is given to a third-world country's government for water, that government is, as often as not, likely to put the money into their swiss bank account soon after getting it, so the people who need the water don't get it at all. The World Bank is even attempting "public-private partnerships" in which people pay part of the money to get their water, and the government pays the other part. Forgive me for asking, but if the people who need the water can't pay the reduced price, how does that help either the World Bank Group or the third-world country?