The two-day meeting -- a rare opportunity for world financial leaders to meet in one place -- concluded with no firm agreements on canceling debts of poor countries or on how to increase aid to them.

World Bank President James Wolfensohn said, however, there was broader recognition than before that more aid and debt relief are essential.

"My sense of it is that actually things did move at this meeting, but that it's (above) the pay grade of finance minister to deal with it," Wolfensohn said on the sidelines of the meetings, which are his last as World Bank president, before he steps down at the end of May. "I think this is head of state stuff," he added.

But Wolfensohn urged that donor countries must act now to increase the amount of and quality of development financing if they were serious about global goals to halve poverty by 2015.

"We must deliver on the promises of aid that have been already made; this is the most immediate and credible step to augment aid financing to met the Millennium Development Goals," he told finance ministers later.

South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, who also chairs the main policy-setting meeting of the World Bank, said there was general agreement that countries must commit more resources.

Britain, the current holder of the G7 presidency, has declared 2005 a make or break year for Africa.

Aid advocates are banking on the Group of Eight leaders summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, in July to announce progress -- or a deal -- on aid and debt relief.