Speaking at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington D.C. on Monday, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said the G7 is "not working" and called for a new multilateral network for the new global economy.

"The G7 is not working," and "the G-20, though valuable, is too unwieldy in moving from decision to action," Zoellick said. "We need a core group of Finance Ministers who will assume responsibility for anticipating issues, sharing information and insights, exploring mutual interests, mobilizing efforts to solve problems, and at least managing differences."

As member countries, the World Bank president suggests the new body include Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the current members of the G7.

"The new multilateralism, suiting our times, will need to be a flexible network, not a fixed nor unitary system," Zoellick added. "It needs to maximize the strengths of interconnecting and overlapping actors and institutions, public and private."

He ended his speech by calling on the new U.S. President to move beyond the aftermath of the current financial crisis and help improve the global financial system as a whole, recommending that this new body will help to do this.

By Erik Kevin Franco and edited by Stephen Huebl
©CEP News Ltd. 2008