Fall out from terrorism will affect world's poor

Alex Vass BMJ

A World Bank report warned recently that as a result of the terrorist attack on the United States, the global downturn in the economy would have disproportionate knock-on effects in the developing world.

The bank estimated that an additional 40000 children aged under 5 years would die and 10 million people would be kept below the poverty line of $1 (66p) a day. The charity Save the Children found the report "deeply worrying."

James Wolfensohn, the president of the World Bank, said: "We have seen the human toll of the recent attacks wrought in the US, with citizens from 80 nations perishing in New York. But there is another human toll that is largely unseen and one that will be felt in all parts of the developing world, especially Africa."

Even before the events of 11 September, growth estimates in developing countries had slumped to 2.9% for 2001, although they were expected to recover to 4.3% next year. The World Bank's revised figures now show the growth figure for next year might be as low as 3.5%.

The World Bank is asking Western governments to increase overseas aid. Currently, most countries fall short of the UN target, which suggests that countries should contribute 0.7% of their gross national product for aid. Figures from the United States are the worst, with the country contributing just 0.1%.