The African Caucus, comprising of African Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, met in
Freetown, Sierra Leone, on August 16-17 to prepare the 2010 Memorandum to the heads of the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWIs)the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World
Bank Group (WBG). The Memorandum will be submitted to the heads of the BWIs during the IMF/WBG Annual Meetings in October 2010. The event was chaired by Dr. Samura Kamara,
Minister of Finance and Economic Development for Sierra Leone and Chairman of the African Caucus, and formally opened by his Excellency, the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Dr.
Ernest Bai Koroma. The African Caucus agreed to: Call on the BWIs to increase the support extended during the global financial and economic crisis as fiscal consolidation in advanced economies would reduce external assistance;
Underscore the importance of scaling up technical and financial support, strengthening policy reform and institutions, and mobilizing resources for infrastructure and agricultural development; Renew the request for a third
chair on the Executive Board of the IMF for sub-Saharan Africa countries in order to enhance the effectiveness of Africas representation; and Underscore their broader commitment to
implement policies for promotion of sustained high growth and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and pledge to work with development partners to narrow the development gap and reduce poverty in Africa. The meeting was preceded by seminars covering the following topics: Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Economic Outlook; African Strategy Renewal; Regional Infrastructure Development in Africa;
Natural Resources Management; and Review of the Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) index. Find attached the 2010 Freetown Declaration of the African Finance Ministers and
Central Bank Governors.
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African Governors to the Bretton Woods Institutions Freetown
Declaration August 16-17, 2010

1. We, African Governors of the Bretton Woods Institutions met in Freetown, Sierra Leone, at our 2010 Caucus on August 16-17, 2010.
2. Hosted and chaired by Dr. Samura Kamara, Chairman of the African Caucus of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG), this event provided the opportunity to exchange views amongst ourselves and with senior representatives of the WBG, the IMF, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on regional macroeconomic prospects , regional
infrastructure and resource management, and to identify the support that is necessary to ensure a rapid return to a high and sustainable growth
path. 3. We came together with awareness of the lessons learned from the experiences of the global financial and economic crisis and the recognition that a slow and uneven return to growth still leaves unacceptable levels of unemployment, especially for youth and the
vulnerable in Africa.
4. More importantly, we came together
with the understanding that our common future requires an audacious approach, one that focuses on strengthening the path to recovery;
pursuing structural reforms; and boosting capital, investment and aid flows to developing countries in ways that allows us to face with
confidence the demands of the post-crisis world. 5. We express our deep concern regarding the long lasting impact of the crisis
on the development trajectories of our countries. We foresee increased challenges in securing financing from both public and private sources as
advanced countries embark on fiscal onsolidation, amidst anaemic recoveries. 6. We also RECOGNIZE that the global crisis presents opportunities for us to rethink our development strategies; engage new or emerging development partners; diversify our economies; and explore new markets as we examine the best options for accelerating economic growth and reducing poverty.
7. We ACCEPT that there is an urgent need to develop and deepen regional and domestic markets to increase our countries resilience against exogenous shocks and to generate employment, unlock Africas untapped potential and sustain pro-poor growth.
8. We ACKNOWLEDGE the huge potential for growth opportunities stemming from Africas natural resources and the need to manage flows judiciously to avoid the resource curse. 9. We further RECOGNIZE that Africa and other LICs have the potential to contribute to stronger and more balanced growth, and should be viewed as markets, offering new opportunities for investment, trade and business.
10. We NOTE the G20s declaration to consider the impact of their policy actions on low-income countries (LICs) as an integral part
to their broader objective of achieving strong, sustainable and balanced growth and ensuring a more robust and resilient global economy for all.
11. We WELCOME the commitment of the G20
to narrowing the development gap and to reduce poverty and encourage them to work towards translating this commitment into action, by urgently implementing the recommendations of the September, 2009 Pittsburg Summit including the need for increased voice and representation at the Bretton Woods Institutions; debt relief; review of Debt Sustainability Framework; the need to deliver on ODA commitments; increasing policy
space; trade, including conclusion of Doha Round/Trade negotiations; climate change; and support for regional integration in Africa.
12. We COMMEND the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWIs) for playing a central part in the global response to the financial and economic crisis, mobilizing critical financing and proffering appropriate policy recommendations.
13. We FURTHER NOTE that the crisis has increased the demand for assistance from BWIs and support the call by the Africa Union (AU) assembly for acceleration of the IDA 16 and ADF 12 replenishment to set the WBG and ADB Group on solid financial footings.
14. We note the ongoing review of the CPIA by the World Bank and request that the process of structured discussions between IDA deputies, World
bank officials and Governors be launched to review the CPIA methodology and implementation. We hereby established a taskforce to contribute to
the review process.
15. We REAFFIRM our resolve to complete the ratification of the 2008 IMF Quota and Voice
Reform by end-September 2010 and highlight the importance of strengthening the legitimacy, credibility and effectiveness of the IMF to
ensure it succeeds in carrying out its renewed mandate.
16. In support of our broader commitment to implement policies to promote a sustained growth and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), we pledge to sharpen our focus on human
development, working with our development partners to narrow the development gap and reduce poverty
17. We COMMEND the World Bank Groups efforts to organize continent-wide consultations in order to revise its partnership with Africa in a spirit
consistent with fostering national ownership of development programs.
We, African IMF/WBG Governors; Call on the IMF to: Maintain and increase the support extended during the crisis on highly concessional terms through the unwinding period of the fiscal and monetary stimulus and fiscal consolidation in advanced countries; accelerate the quota
and governance reforms in line with commitments made in Pittsburgh by the G20 and strive to meet the agreed timelines ahead of the November 2010
Seoul Summit of the G20; Ensure that Africa remains an equal partner at the end of the quota and governance reforms; To that end:
Protect the quota shares of each African and other low-income countries at the 2008 (second round) level through ad hoc quota increases; Urgently adopt a decision for a third chair for SSA members during the on-going reforms on quota, voice and governance, so as to give adequate
voice and representation to SSA members; Support SSAs pursuit for a collective and coordinated representation at the BWIs.
Commit to complete a review of the current quota formula before the 15th quota review to realize the 2008 commitment of all IMF
Governors. Urge the WBG to: Scale up development financing, including through new approaches that
encourage financing from both public and private sources and to ensure an ambitious replenishment for the concessional lending facilities of the International Development Association and IBRD
access; Support our countries by transferring resources, where possible, from WBG net income to the respective lending facilities for low income countries and increasing the Bank Groups investment activities in our regions to ensure that the new capital resources also benefit our countries. Play an advocacy role for the existing bilateral aid commitments to be honored and ensure that our domestic policy initiatives are supplemented by measures taken by developed
countries, including through adequate and timely development assistance; Explore innovative, results-based mechanisms to harness the private sector for agricultural innovation, food
security, and regional integration including through private public partnerships; Allow more space in the use of IDA resources in financing regional infrastructure to close agricultural productivity gaps amidst growing demands and mounting environmental challenges; Capture the opportunities presented by the global crisis to advance Africas economic growth and development, and reduce poverty.
We urge the AfDB and WBG to: Support our efforts to increase regional trade by assisting in developing and improving Pan African corridors and networks in areas of infrastructure to achieve the broader objective of Africa-wide integration in all sectors; Scale up technical and financial support, strengthen policies and
institutions and intensify resource mobilization efforts for infrastructure and agriculture development using their convening power and outreach capacity; Scale up IFC resources to facilitate Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the development of regional infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa; Scale up resources to support achievement of the MDGs by 2015; Bolster support to facilitate our countries responses to challenges of climate change. We Urge the UNDP to: Provide the technical assistance to our countries endowed with natural resources to strengthen their capacity in managing
flows, not only from good practices established by others, but also from the existing international transparency and governance
frameworks; Provide the necessary support to ensure that, given the substantial FDI in the extraction of mineral sectors, our governments
negotiate agreements that are fair and consistent with their development agendas. We reaffirm our commitment guided by a shared vision for long term cooperative efforts, to work with the IMF, WBG, AfDB, UNDP and other development partners to overcome the challenges ahead and build on common values and goals in our pursuit of a high
and sustainable development path. We express our gratitude and appreciation to His Excellency the President, the Government and the People of Sierra Leone for their hospitality and support during our stay in the country. Freetown, August 17, 2010. The African Caucus.