Agence France Presse
BAMAKO, Feb 19 (AFP) - The heads of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank were to meet here Monday with the leaders of more than a dozen African nations on how best to promote development in the region.
The leaders from western and central Africa were to meet the heads of the IMF and the World Bank, Horst Kohler and James Wolfensohn, in the Malian capital.
"We came to show the commitment of the IMF and of the World Bank at the side of Africa in its efforts to fight poverty," Kohler said on his arrival at Bamako airport.
The joint initiative from the IMF and World Bank "shows that we have come together to support, advise and assist Africa in its fight against poverty," added Wolfensohn, who arrived a few minutes after Kohler.
The two economists were welcomed by Prime Minister Mande Sidibe, an orchestra and scores of children waving paper flags with IMF printed on one side and World Bank on the other.
Among those expected at the meeting are the presidents of Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Gabon, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Ghana, Niger, Cape Verde and Madagascar.
Mali's President Alpha Oumar Konare is hosting the forum in his role as head of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Kohler and Wolfensohn "will be there to listen to the leaders, to ask them how -- in their opinion -- we can help them better," said IMF spokeswoman Lucie Mboto Fouda.
The priorities for the two international financial bodies will be macro-economic stabilisation, how to support economic growth, human development problems, particularly HIV/AIDS, conflict resolution and economic competitiveness.:
