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New York: Human development is far more likely to take root if there is genuine democracy in a society, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, stressing the need for authorities everywhere to give people a greater say in their own governance.

A joint mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Commission, and World Bank visited Bucharest from April 27 to May 9 to prepare the first review of Romania’s new Stand-By Arrangement.

New York: United Nations human rights workers have found the bodies of nearly 70 people, apparently the victims of a militia backing the former Ivorian president Laurent Gbagbo, in a series of graves in a suburb of Côte d’Ivoire’s biggest city, Abidjan.

New York: Bosnia and Herzegovina is facing its worst crisis since fighting stopped in 1995, with no prospect of a new state government being formed, a stalled economy and a direct threat from Republika Srpska to the country’s very existence, the Security Council heard today.

New York: Renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind, biomass and hydropower could meet nearly 80 per cent of the world’s energy supplies by 2050 if governments pursue policies that harness their potential, a United Nations-backed report released today says.

New York: The world’s least developed countries, which have low-carbon profiles and rich natural assets, are better placed than their industrialized to make their economies more environmentally sustainable because they are less dependent on fossil fuel-based technologies, according to a United Nations report unveiled today.

Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have commended the authorities for the continued strong performance despite the adverse shocks in recent years. While medium-term prospects remain favorable, Directors encouraged the authorities to press ahead with essential fiscal consolidation and structural reforms to sustain pro-poor growth and employment over the medium term.

Executive Directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expressed sympathy for the loss of life and extensive damage inflicted by two recent earthquakes. Despite the near-term disruption from the earthquakes, New Zealand’s increasing ties with fast growing Asian economies and sound macroeconomic framework bode well for its economic prospects. Directors noted that continued policy efforts are needed to achieve sustained growth rates and reduce the vulnerabilities associated with low national saving and large net foreign liabilities.

The Italian economy is continuing to recover from the very deep recession that it shared with most OECD countries, but more can be done to boost resilience, according to a new OECD report. A combination of well-targeted macroeconomic and structural policies would help achieve sustained growth, as well as contribute to fiscal consolidation, it adds.

At last, the UPA Government has conceded that high inflation is inimical to sustained growth of the economy, and has, therefore, welcomed RBI’s new monetary policy trajectory (May 3), which gives precedence to bringing down elevated inflation, even at the risk of lower growth over the short-term. Till recently, Government did not seem overly concerned with what it regarded as essentially food price inflation not amenable to correction in the near term. The budget for 2011-12 presented at the end of February was confidently framed with a GDP growth target of 9 per cent, as against an estimated 8.6 per cent in 2010-11.