Formation Type Legal status

27 December 1945 International organization Treaty Economic development, poverty elimination 187 countries Jim Yong Kim Board of Directors worldbank.org

Purpose/focus
Membership President Main organ Website

Introduction . . .

The World Bank provides financial and technical assistance to countries. The World Bank is not actually a bank in the common sense. The Bank's goal is to "bridge the economic divide between poor and rich countries, to turn rich country resources into poor country growth It consists of two development institutions -- the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA)-- owned by 186 member countries. The Bank is closely affiliated with three other organizations --the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) The term "World Bank" generally refers to just the IBRD and IDA, whereas the term World Bank Group or WBG is used to refer to all five institutions collectively

World Bank Group

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), established in 1945, which provides debt financing on the basis of sovereign guarantees; International Finance Corporation (IFC), established in 1956, which provides various forms of loans equity and technical assistance, primarily to the private sector; International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, which provides concessional financing (interest-free loans or grants)

International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), established in 1966, which works with governments to reduce investment risk;
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), established in 1988, which provides insurance against certain types of risk, including political risk, primarily to the private sector.

The World Bank's activities in developing countries

Human development (e.g. education, health), Agriculture and rural development (e.g. irrigation, rural services), Environmental protection (e.g. pollution reduction, establishing and enforcing regulations),

Infrastructure (e.g. roads, urban regeneration, electricity),

Governance (e.g. anti-corruption, legal institutions development).

Two Institutions, One Mission

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

We are not a bank in the ordinary sense but a unique partnership to reduce poverty and support development. Six strategic themes drive the Banks work, focusing on the poorest countries, Fragile and conflict-affected states, The Arab world, Middle-income countries, Global public goods issues, Delivery of knowledge and learning services.

The Poorest Countries

The Challenge:

What We're Doing:

An estimated 1.4 billion people survive on incomes of $1.25 or less a day. Rising food prices threaten to increase hunger and malnutrition, while climate change is affecting agriculture, Communicable diseases, especially HIV/AIDS and malaria, are widespread.

The World Bank Group has assembled record funding to help the poorest countries through its International Development Association (IDA). We place new emphasis on fighting hunger and malnutrition, particularly through better agricultural productivity. Encouraging regional integration and helping develop infrastructure: power, water, transport, and information and communications technologies

Post-Conflict and Fragile States

The Challenge:

What We're Doing:

World's poorest countries have faced a vicious cycle of conflict and poverty.

Some 80 percent of the 20 poorest countries have suffered a major war in the past 15 years, Support reconstruction after bringing extraordinary suffering World War II. The World Bank to their people. Group is working to offer more responsive, flexible and Peace can also be fragile comprehensive solutions in Countries emerging from war difficult environments. face a 44 percent chance of relapsing within five years.

Helping prevent conflict and support reconstruction remains a critical part of the World Bank's global mission of poverty reduction,

Middle-Income Countries
The Challenge:

What We're Doing:

These countries are generally creditworthy and have some access to financial markets,

They face constraints in mobilizing the funds they need to These countries are also invest in infrastructure and increasingly important partners essential services. in our work to address critical cross-border and global issues, They also need help to reform such as clean energy, trade policies and institutions in ways integration, environmental that improve the investment protection, international climate financial stability and the fight against infectious diseases.

working to meet middle-income countries specific needs of financial products and knowledge and learning services.

The Arab World

The Challenge:

What We're Doing:

The Arab world has strong potential for growth and development,

It remains poorly integrated into the global economy apart from the oil sector. The initiative focuses on three key pillars Highest unemployment Human Development Lowest economic participation by women.

The World Bank Group, in close cooperation with the League of Arab States, has established the Arab World Initiative (AWI),

Improving the Quality of Education,

Suffer from such problems as water scarcity, lack of economic diversity, weak public accountability, and conflict.

Infrastructure Projects, and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development.

Member Countries

The IBRD has 185 member governments, Other institutions have between 140 and 176 members. To become a member of the Bank, under the IBRD Articles of Agreement, a country must first join the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Membership in IDA, IFC and MIGA are conditional on membership in IBRD. Afghanistan, Jul 14, 1955 Pakistan, Jul 11, 1950 India, Dec 27, 1945 Saudi Arabia, Aug 26, 1957

Organization

Established in 1944, the World Bank is headquartered in Washington, D.C. We have more than 9,000 employees in more than 100 offices worldwide The organizations that make up the World Bank Group are owned by the governments of member nations, which have the ultimate decision-making power within the organizations on all matters, including policy, financial or membership issues.

Member countries govern the World Bank Group through the Boards of Governors and the Boards of Executive Directors. These bodies make all major decisions for the organizations.

Board of Governor

The Boards of Governors consist of one Governor and one Alternate Governor appointed by each member country. The office is usually held by the country's minister of finance, governor of its central bank, or a senior official of similar rank. The Governors and Alternates serve for terms of five years and can be reappointed. If the country is a member of the Bank and is also a member of the (IFC) or the (IDA), then the appointed Governor and his or her alternate serve exofficio as the Governor and Alternate on the IFC and IDA Boards of Governors.

They also serve as representatives of their country on the Administrative Council of the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes(ICSID) unless otherwise noted.
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)s Governors and Alternates are appointed separately

Role of the Boards of Governors

Bank's senior decision-making body according to the Articles of Agreement Boards of Governors has delegated all powers to the Executive Directors except those mentioned in the Articles of Agreement. These powers include: Admit and suspend members; Increase or decrease the authorized capital stock; Determine the distribution of the net income of the Bank; Decide appeals from interpretations of the Articles of Agreement by the Executive Directors; Make formal comprehensive arrangements to cooperate with other international organizations;

Suspend permanently the operations of the Bank;

Increase the number of elected Executive Directors; and Approve amendments to the Articles of Agreement.

Boards of Directors

The Boards of Directors consist of the World Bank Group President and 25 Executive Directors. The President is the presiding officer, and ordinarily has no vote except a deciding vote in case of an equal division. The Executive Directors as individuals cannot exercise any power nor commit or represent the Bank unless specifically authorized by the Boards to do so. With the term beginning November 1, 2010, the number of Executive Directors increased by one, totaling 25. Alternates to Executive Directors have full power to act in the absence of their respective Executive Directors. Senior Advisors along with the Alternates to Executive Directors, attend most Board meetings in an advisory capacity, without voting rights

Voting Powers

The World Bank and the IMF have adopted a weighted system of voting. A quota is assigned in IMF according to the relative size of the economy, and this determines its voting power.

Each new member country of the Bank is allotted 250 votes plus one additional vote for each share it holds in the Bank's capital stock. The quota assigned by the Fund is used to determine the number of shares allotted to each new member country of the Bank.
Five Executive Directors are appointed by the members with the five largest numbers of shares (currently the United States, Japan, Germany, France and the United Kingdom). China, the Russian Federation, and Saudi Arabia each elect its own Executive Director. The other Executive Directors are elected by the other members. The voting power distribution differs from agency to agency within the World Bank Group.

You are not alone

John Maynard Keynes Founding father of the two institutions

Admitted

at the inaugural meeting of the International Monetary Fund that he was confused by the names

He

thought the Fund should be called a bank, and the Bank should be called a fund.

Similarities between IMF & WB

the Bank and the IMF are twin intergovernmental pillars supporting the structure of the world's economic and financial order Both are in a sense owned and directed by the governments of member nations.

Both institutions concern themselves with economic issues and concentrate their efforts on broadening and strengthening the economies of their member nations.
Staff members of both the Bank and IMF often appear at international conferences, The two institutions hold joint annual meetings,

which the news media cover extensively.

Both have headquarters in Washington, D.C. For many years both occupied the same building and even now, though located on opposite sides of a street very near the White House,

Share a common library and other facilities,

regularly exchange economic data, sometimes present joint seminars, daily hold informal meetings, and occasionally send out joint missions to member countries.

Distinction between IMF & WB

World Bank is primarily a development institution IMF is a cooperative institution that seeks to maintain an orderly system of payments and receipts between nations. Each has a different purpose Receives its funding from different sources Assists different categories of members, and strives to achieve distinct goals through methods peculiar to itself A distinct size & structure

Distinction between IMF & WB

The IMF is small (about 2,300 staff members) and, Most of its staff members work at headquarters in Washington, D.C., although three small offices are maintained in Paris, Geneva, and at the United Nations in New York. Its professional staff members are for the most part economists and financial experts. The World Bank itself comprises two major organizations IBRD & IDA. With over 7,000 staff members, the World Bank Group is about three times as large as the IMF, and maintains about 40 offices throughout the world, although 95 percent of its staff work at its Washington, D.C., headquarters. The Bank employs a staff with an astonishing range of expertise: economists, engineers, urban planners, agronomists, statisticians, lawyers, portfolio managers, loan officers, project appraisers, as well as experts in telecommunications, water supply and sewerage, transportation, education, energy, rural development, population and health care, and other disciplines.

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank at a Glance International Monetary Fund World Bank oversees the international monetary system seeks to promote the economic development of promotes exchange stability and orderly the world's poorer countries exchange relations among its member countries assists developing countries through long-term assists all members--both industrial and financing of development projects and programs developing countries--that find themselves in provides to the poorest developing countries temporary balance of payments difficulties by whose per capita GNP is less than $865 a year providing short- to medium-term credits special financial assistance through the supplements the currency reserves of its International Development Association (IDA) members through the allocation of SDRs (special encourages private enterprises in developing drawing rights); to date SDR 21.4 billion has been countries through its affiliate, the International issued to member countries in proportion to their Finance Corporation (IFC) quotas acquires most of its financial resources by draws its financial resources principally from the borrowing on the international bond market quota subscriptions of its member countries has an authorized capital of $184 billion, of has at its disposal fully paid-in quotas now which members pay in about 10 percent totaling SDR 145 billion (about $215 billion) has a staff of 7,000 drawn from 180 member has a staff of 2,300 drawn from 182 member countries countries

Thanks to Almighty Allah