senegal: The myths and dangers of PRSPs

Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), required by the IMF and the World Bank for access to debt relief and concessional assistance are loaded with a number of myths that should be debunked. According to these two institutions, PRSPs are country-driven and reflect the priorities of each country in its fight against poverty. But 'national ownership' is more theoretical than real. In many cases, CSOs have been frustrated by the process and democratically-elected parliaments have been bypassed. And the fact is that African governments put in PRSPs what the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWI) would like to see, rather than what the poor really want.