BANKING & INSURANCE
As a first step in that process, Representative Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Ohio, is introducing this week a provision to a foreign aid appropriations bill that would shift the US contribution to MIGA to an international tuberculosis fund, Welch said.

The US holds the largest number of shares in MIGA and therefore has the strongest voting clout. Other top shareholders are Japan, the United Kingdom and Germany. China is the largest shareholder from the developing world.

MIGA, which has 154 members, was designed to encourage private investment in developing countries “by providing viable alternatives in investment insurance against non-commercial risks,” according to the agency’s statement of purpose.

Its insurance covers corporations and financial institutions against such risks as currency restrictions, government expropriation, breach of contract and wars and civil disturbance. It also offers marketing advice to help its developing-country members promote their own investment opportunities.

It is closely linked with World Bank efforts to encourage privatisation in developing countries. Last April, the agency launched a website, called PrivatizationLink, that details privatisation programmes in individual countries and provides potential investors with reports on trends and “leading-edge practices” in the transfer of public companies to private ownership.