Economic Reforms and Social Unrest in Developing Countries

Economic Reforms and Social Unrest in Developing Countries Michel Chossudovsky SINCE the early 1980s,the 'macro-economic stabilisation' and 'structural adjustment' programmes imposed by the IMF and the World Bank on developing countries (as a condition for the rescheduling of their external debt) have led to the impoverishment of hundreds of millions of people. Contrary to the spirit of the Bretton Woods agreement which was predicated on ' economic reconstruction', the structural adjustment programme has largely contributed to destabilising national currencies and ruining the economies of developing countries.