UNCLAS PORT OF SPAIN 000590

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

TREASURY FOR USED/IBRD, USED/IMF

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON EFIN TD
SUBJECT: TRINIDAD & TOBAGO WANTS U.S. WORLD BANK NOMINEE TO WORK FOR
REFORM

REF: STATE 73691

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - HANDLE ACCORDINGLY


1. (U) Post conveyed request for GOTT to support U.S. nominee for
President of the World Bank Robert B. Zoellick to the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and to Ministry of Finance Permanent Secretary
Alison Lewis, who serves as alternate governor of the Bank for
Trinidad & Tobago (T&T), on June 4.


2. (SBU) In a June 8 follow-up conversation with Embassy Economic
Chief, Lewis characterized Mr. Zoellick's nomination as a "sure
thing" under the Bank's current governance structure. She said that
the GOTT concurred with a recent letter sent to the World Bank U.S.
Executive Director by his Brazilian counterpart, who represents T&T
on the Executive Board. She described that letter as conveying a
willingness to work with Mr. Zoellick but also a desire to see the
Bank reformed so that its governance and activities better reflect
the needs and views of developing countries. Lewis recounted that
the G-24, under T&T's chairmanship at the time, had sent a similar
message in response to IMF Managing Director de Rato's nomination.
She credited de Rato with having moved the Fund in the desired
direction and hoped that Mr. Zoellick would do the same at the Bank.



3. (SBU) Lewis described the custom of U.S. and European candidates
taking the helm of the Bank and Fund as out of date. Neither
praising nor criticizing Mr. Zoellick's qualifications, she said the
GOTT would prefer to see these positions filled on the basis of
merit, rather than geography, and by candidates who can identify
with developing country perspectives.


4. (SBU) While professing impatience with countries that ignore IMF
and World Bank advice and then blame those institutions when their
economies deteriorate, Lewis also voiced concern over the
possibility that, unless these institutions reform, developing
countries would stop coming to them for support. She cited as
disturbing developments the early repayment by Argentina and Brazil
of their Bank/Fund loans, Venezuela's announced withdrawal from the
institutions, and China's lack of attention to good governance in
its growing financial support for developing countries.


5. (SBU) COMMENT: While Lewis' response to Mr. Zoellick's
nomination was cool, we take at face value her message that T&T is
prepared to work with him to address developing countries' concerns
with the Bank. The Bank and Fund draw their share of criticism from
local academic economists and media, but GOTT financial officials
value their good relations with the institutions. In particular,
they take pride in T&T's having stuck with an IMF stand-by
arrangement in the early 1990's and maintained sound macroeconomic
policies since then, with fourteen consecutive years of positive
real GDP growth to show for it. END COMMENT.

AUSTIN