Activists protest on sidelines of IMF and World Bank annual meeting

Demonstrators on Thursday gathered on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the IMF and World Bank in Marrakech to protest against the two institutions who they say are guilty of fuelling inequality.

At a "People’s Alternative Global Tribunal" organised in the Moroccan city, activists testified about how the policies of the international financial institutions impacted their countries.

The court, organised by the activist group Fight Inequality, found the international financial institutions "guilty of fuelling inequality by colluding with the financial sector and powerful multinational corporations".

In the verdict read by Bhumika Muchhala, a researcher and analyst who advises developing nations on sustainable development, the tribunal called the World Bank and International Monetary Fund "the biggest scam of the century".

The International Monetary Fund helps governments that find themselves in tough financial situations but requires in exchange economic policies that are often seen as controversial when local social welfare programmes are cut, and currencies sink in value.

The World Bank provides development aid but is often seen as a slow and cumbersome lender.

The annual meeting is being held for the first time in fifty years on the African continent, with African prosperity high on the agenda. 

Africa is currently facing several challenges, including a debt crisis affecting several countries, while the consequences of climate change and a poverty rate which is reducing at a slower rate than elsewhere are hitting the continent hard.