CAFOD has issued the following statement in response to the announcement by the Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, that he will personally take up the role of UK Governor to the World Bank.
“Ed Miliband’s pledge to put international development at the core of his work as Foreign Secretary is to be warmly welcomed.
"His decision to act as the UK’s governor on the World Bank’s board is a huge opportunity for him to urge a major rethink of its governance and policies - from reforming voting rights so that low-income countries are fairly represented, to improving debt transparency and ending seed certification laws that harm smallholder farmers and the environment.
"The UK is one of only six countries with a permanent seat on the board. By taking a strong stand now to build a more representative, transparent and accountable World Bank, Ed Miliband can make a real difference to millions of vulnerable people."
For more information or interview requests, please contact:
Rosalind Mayfield, CAFOD Media Lead
Melissa Nethersole, CAFOD Media Officer
CAFOD’s out-of-hours media line
CAFOD is the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, and part of Caritas Internationalis, working with communities across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America to fight poverty and injustice, including those worst hit by climate change. The agency works with people in need, regardless of race, gender, religion or nationality.
CAFOD is funded mainly by voluntary donations from people in the Catholic community of England and Wales. We also receive funding from fellow Catholic charities and development agencies, the DEC, trusts and foundations, and the UK and other governments.
We are calling on the UK government to do two urgent things in 2026 to address the global debt crisis:
Pass legislation to ensure private lenders can no longer make huge profits from countries struggling with unsustainable debts
Use the UK's presidency of the G20 in 2027 to fix the global debt system.
