Beyond Wall Street and Main Street here in the U.S., experts are also warning that the financial crisis will have repercussions on streets throughout the developing world. Growth in sub-Saharan Africa is expected to slow, inflation is on the rise, and the effects of the food and fuel crises will likely be exacerbated. These developments could have serious implications for the world’s poorest people – the World Bank estimates that the rise in food prices alone could push at least another 100 million people into poverty, equivalent to seven years lost in the fight against poverty.

This Friday, President Bush will host leaders from the G20 in Washington D.C. to address the financial crisis, with an aim to identify mechanisms to deal with the current situation and implement measures to ensure that future crises are avoided. Discussions will include the question of reshaping global financial governance and imposing greater regulation on the global financial sector. As the New York Times reports, European leaders are pushing for “…regulation, “or at least oversight,” of all financial institutions, accountability and transparency, new approaches to risk assessment…” in addition to a central role for the IMF. While some have likened this meeting to a second Bretton Woods – the post-WWII gathering of Allied Forces that created global monetary bodies like the IMF and World Bank – the adjustment of existing institutions and policies seems a more likely outcome of the summit than the establishment of new institutions.

The G20 is a group of finance ministers from the world’s leading economies (the G8, the European Union and Australia), as well as a group of ten emerging economies including Argentina, Brazil, China, India, and South Africa. Many are hoping that the attendance of some developing countries indicates that the challenges facing poor countries in light of the current crisis will be high on the agenda. Questions include how to protect poor communities from the impacts of the crisis, how countries can prevent losing recent gains made in combating poverty, and how the developing world – who is the most vulnerable – can be shielded from such crises in the future. While the inclusion of emerging economies at the meeting is an important step towards prioritizing development on the international economic agenda, many are doubtful that the G20 group will be able to establish guidelines that will benefit the developing world in the long-run.

The meeting is a precursor to the Doha international trade and development talks scheduled for the end of the month. ONE will be sending a team to Doha, so keep your eyes peeled for future posts about important outcomes from the meeting.

-Beth Adler