Perpetuating Poverty: The World Bank, the IMF, and the Developing World

By Ian Vasquez

Book Overview

An expose of the scandalous record of the World Bank and IMF. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 188257706X
• ISBN13: 9781882577064
• Release Date: December 1993
• Publisher: Cato Institute
• Length: 362 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.1" x 6.2"

Customer Reviews

Making mischief since way back

I found this to be a cogent analysis of the two organizations in question, particularly in light of the recent turmoil they've caused in East Asia and Russia. Through this book, we see that the IMF and the World Bank were making mischief abroad long before their more recent, more well publicized disasters. The word disaster is particularly appropriate in Indonesia; I hesitate to guess how many decades the country has been set back as a result of the IMF/World Bank meddling. For a good analysis, see books by Steve Hanke, such as _The Revolution in Development Economics_. Some of his articles are available on forbes.com.I'd like to see an updated version of the book, to take into account the more recent boondoggles. The sad thing is that they not only have wasted billions of dollars, but often have left the recipients worse off than they were to begin with. The administrators of the organizations, of course, are living high on the hog all the while (to any IMF/World Bank top dogs who've recently taken a vow of poverty, my apologies), even as they're effectively impoverishing millions.

Wondered why yout tax goes up and poverty remains?

Youre feeding a monster which doesn't care about people. It exists to perpetuate the corrupt oppressive and plain incompetent governments of various nations by bailing them out continuously. If you wanted to feed an african family would you buy them grain and tools or would you send the money to their rulers (with a couple of feeble conditions) and pretty much let them do what they like with it? The IMF is a power brokers dream, leeching funds from everyone and being accountable to none.The previous readers precious nation states and their statists are the enemies of individual liberty, they are to blame - and we for letting them get away with it.A good book, enough to make you think twice when you next hear about the billions pledged for this or that project which never seems to actually help anyone except global politicians.