On October 17th more than 40 million people spoke out against poverty. This is remarkable global call to action and one that will become louder and stronger in coming years, and more and more difficult for political leaders to ignore.

This week I have had the privilege of leading a fantastic team on behalf of GCAP working on bringing the voices of so many people to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund whose annual meetings are taking place now in Washington DC. The team has been working together for the last few weeks to put on a series of events and meetings to bring the global call directly to these two institutions whose policies and loan conditions often have horrendous consequences for the poorest people in the world.

“We sing poverty goodbye,” a young African girl in a school uniform says. Then, the choir sets in. Men and women dressed in white sing to tell the story of injustice and poverty – and the need to change—in the Poverty Requiem, a new musical piece for choir and percussion.

The Poverty Requiem is a musical manifestation asking for international attention to the Millennium Development Goals. Internationally the Poverty Requiem is performed in the context of the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP).

The song is written by the Dutch composer Peter Maissan and lyrics are by Sylvia Borren, executive director Oxfam Novib Netherlands.  In a collaboration with the music department of Kunst Factor, International Foundation for Choir Music and Europa Cantat the Requiem is distributed among international choirs, umbrella organizations of choirs, and individual singers.