There is no lack of rhetorical commitment to multilateral collaboration and proper participation by emerging economies in the world's handling of its greatest challenges. More often than not it is honoured in the breach. So it is welcome that World Bank members have agreed a capital raise giving emerging countries a little more space at the Bretton Woods table.

The new $86bn in capital for the World Bank's quasi-commercial lending arm – the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development – no doubt makes a big difference to the bank itself. It is its first capital injection in 20 years and raises its equity by half. Its president, Robert Zoellick, had warned that without more capital lending would soon hit a ceiling.

How it matters to global development is less clear. IBRD clients are middle-income states with access to private capital markets. That access has, however, suffered from those markets' collapse, and will continue to suffer as even recovering markets are swamped by rich-country borrowing needs. So the IBRD plays a useful stopgap role.