The World Bank (WB) has called upon countries to prioritise citizen security, justice and job creation as a key to breaking cycles of political and criminal violence and achieving the MDGs.

In its World Development Report 2011, released on Sunday, WB indicates that fixing the economic, political, and security problems that disrupt development and trap fragile states in cycles of violence, requires strengthening national institutions and improving governance in the highlighted indicators.

President Paul Kagame is one of the two Heads of state serving on the World Development Report 2011 team. The other on the 20-member Council of prominent figures, is Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirlef.

"Some 1.5 billion people live in countries affected by repeated cycles of political and criminal violence, and no low-income fragile or conflict-affected country has yet to achieve a single MDG,” the report indicated.

The World Bank’s President, Robert B. Zoellick Zoellick, called for the harmonisation of security and development to break the cycles of fragility and violence affecting more than one billion people.

"If we are to break the cycles of violence and lessen the stresses that drive them, countries must develop more legitimate, accountable and capable national institutions that provide for citizen security, justice and jobs,” he said.

The report adds; "Successful early reforms have generally focused on providing citizens with improved security, justice and jobs, and understanding the positive and negative inter-relationships between them”.

WB also emphasised that capable and legitimate institutions were crucial because they were able to mediate the stresses that otherwise lead to repeated waves of violence and instability.

The report recommended enhanced international support in "Providing more, and more integrated, assistance for citizen security, justice and jobs, including greater assistance for job creation and to build well-governed police forces and justice systems.”

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