Getting More Money for World Bank Will Be Difficult--Baker

WASHINGTON —  Treasury Secretary James A. Baker III told the World Bank today that persuading Congress to support a major increase in the bank’s lending “will not be an easy issue.”

But Baker said the Reagan Administration is “committed to press for these funds,” which he called necessary for the 151-nation organization’s “continued efficient operation.”

Barber Conable, World Bank president, is seeking an increase in capital to support a boost in bank lending to underdeveloped nations, mostly in Latin America and Africa, in the range of $40 billion to $80 billion. The increase would be shared among the world’s industrialized nations.

The proposed boost comes as private lending to the Third World has all but dried up in the face of an accumulated debt of $1.1 trillion and actions by some countries, including Brazil, to suspend payments.