UN Chief Calls for Reform of Global Financial System
UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday called for "deep and systemic reforms" of the global financial system amid an ongoing financial crisis that has engulfed major markets around the world.
"The ad hoc manner in which governments have had to respond to the management of this crisis is reflective of serious lacunae in the current world financial system," Ban said in a statement.
"To ensure continued stability and protect the economic gains of both developed and developing countries, we need to consider deep and systemic reforms based on an inclusive multilateralism for a global financial system that can better meet the challenges of the 21st century," he said.
Ban expressed deep concern about the impact of the crisis on the developing world, particularly on the "poorest of the poor," saying that it was likely to render serious setback on efforts to meet major development goals.
"The initiatives by the World Bank and the IMF (the International Monetary Fund) to provide new emergency liquidity provisioning to poor countries could help them counteract some of the consequences of this crisis. But more needs to be done," Ban noted.
At the United Nations, the world needs to consider "urgent multilateral action to alleviate the impact of recent events on the development agenda of the organization, covering the entire gamut of issues from the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals to the food and energy crises, as well as the challenges of climate change," he said.
Despite "laudable" steps taken by major economies and international financial institutions over the weekend, "more coordinated approaches, including direct intervention by governments of the major economies, are necessary to recapitalize the banking system and guarantee the savings of ordinary people," he said.
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