IMF Managing Director Rodrigo Rato told the annual general meeting here of both the Fund and the Bank that it was essential that "we ... continue to find ways to guarantee that the voices of all our member governments are heard."

Rato told the gathering that the IMF had "to maintain a consensus approach to decision-making" and "ensure representation of all regions and countries on the IMF's staff."

"Many members want deeper progress on issues of voice and participation that would take into account changes happening in the world, he said.

But he added that changes in individual country quotas and voting shares, as sought by developing nations, "will require a political consensus, which is not yet evident."

The issue could come to a head next year when the term of World Bank President James Wolfensohn comes to an end.

While the head of the bank has traditionally been an American, developing countries are now insisting that the choice of Wolfensohn's successor -- if he is not given another term -- should be open to candidates from everywhere.

"A good deal of the policy issues (at the IMF) are on Africa," noted Malawi Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe.

"If the IMF and the World Bank are going to be effective it's important that they do hear an African point of view," he said, adding that at IMF headquarters in Washington there should be more African representatives "talking about the reality of Africa.

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He pointed out that on the 24-member IMF executive board there are nine directors for Europe and just two from Africa.

Developing countries in an association known as the Group of 24 on Friday chastised the IMF and the World Bank for what they said had been their failure to give them a greater voice in the two bodies.

The ministers in a statement recalled that at an international conference in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002 there was agreement that developing countries were entitled to a higher profile in the IMF and World Bank.