International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (English International Bank for Reconstruction and Development , IBRD ) is part of the World Bank Group and the World Bank in the narrow sense.
Founding history
The establishment of the IBRD as part of the World Bank Group was decided at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods in July 1944 , and the IBRD was established on December 27, 1945. On June 25, 1946, the bank began operations at its headquarters in Washington, DC (USA) with an initial capital of 12 billion US dollars . The bank was created with a view to the great need for long-term capital expected in the post-war period for the reconstruction and economic development of its member countries. At first it used its funds mainly for the reconstruction of Europe. After the start of American economic aid in favor of Europe, it was able to concentrate on developing countries from the late 1940s .
Germany decided to join the IBRD on July 28, 1952 and became the 53rd member on August 14.
Financing and use of funds
As an official multilateral institution whose capital shares are held by member states in relation to their economic strength, the IBRD is able to borrow money on the capital market on very favorable terms and to pass it on to its borrowing members. As of June 30, 2003 , 184 countries had subscribed for a total of US $ 189.5 billion. The German share of this was 4.61% (share of voting rights 4.49%).
The IBRD finances the loans (term: 15 to 20 years, three to five free years), which it grants, mainly from its own borrowings on the international capital markets, but also from loan repayments and, to a lesser extent, from contributions by members to the share capital and from Net income . In fiscal 2003, the World Bank made loans totaling approximately US $ 11.2 billion to finance 99 projects and programs in 39 countries.
Mandate and task
The main task of the IBRD is to promote economic development in developing and transition countries . The focus is on fighting poverty , protecting the environment and promoting private sector development. The main instrument is the granting of long-term loans at near-market conditions. This is used to finance investment projects, technical assistance and economic reform programs. The most important basis for the scope and direction of this financing is the Country Assistance Strategy (CAS), which is drawn up by the World Bank together with the recipient country and is based on its own development strategies.
Structure and legal status
Like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank is a specialized agency of the United Nations . Members of the IBRD can only be states that already belong to the IMF and have assumed all associated obligations. Membership in the IBRD is in turn a prerequisite for joining the International Development Organization (IDA), International Finance Corporation (IFC), Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
The supreme body of the IBRD (as with IFC, IDA and MIGA) is the Board of Governors , for which each member country appoints a governor (usually the Minister of Economics or Finance ) and a deputy. The IBRD, IDA and IFC Executive Board has consisted of 24 people since autumn 1992; five of them are appointed by the members with the highest capital shares (including Germany), the remaining 19 are elected every two years by the governors of other member countries. With the exception of the People's Republic of China , Russia and Saudi Arabia , which are represented by their own executive director, the other elected directors each represent several member countries (constituencies). The executive directors take care of the day-to-day business on behalf of their governors.
The President conducts the day-to-day business in accordance with the resolutions of the Board of Directors. He is elected by the Executive Directors for a five-year term and may not be either the Governor or the Executive Director. He chairs the board of directors (without voting rights, except in the event of a tie) and heads the staff. President of the IBRD and its sister companies IDA and MIGA was last from 2005 to 2007 the American Paul Wolfowitz . The IFC and MIGA have organizational peculiarities insofar as they have their own staff, separate from the IBRD and IDA, and their own executive vice-president.
When voting in the Board of Governors and the Board of Directors, the weight of the votes of the individual country is essentially based on the amount of its capital share. As with the IMF, all members - beyond a certain number of basic votes - have voting rights according to their financial participation.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b World Bank : Archives - World Bank Group Historical Chronology: 1944–1949 (english)
- ↑ Law on the Accession of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Agreement on the International Monetary Fund and on the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ( Federal Law Gazette 1952 II p. 637 )
- ↑ World Bank : Archives - World Bank Historical Chronology: 1950–1959 (English)
- ↑ List of the 24 executive directors and their deputies (pdf) ( Memento of the original from July 4, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (As of May 12, 2008) on web.worldbank.org
