World leaders agreed at the G20 to treble the size of the IMF's resources, but critics worry about strengthening the Fund without fundamental reform of its governance and conditionality.
Debt
Land
News
DFID snuggling up to the Bank?
In February the UK Department for International Development (DFID) belatedly released its latest annual report on its relationship with the World Bank. This continues a tradition which sees these reports appear at irregular intervals. As with previous annual reports there is a marked absence of the critiques heard from the Banks Independent Evaluation Group, the Parliament's International Development Committee or civil society for the period reviewed.
IFI governance
News
World Bank's planned lending splurge: Do the numbers stack up?
The first signs of a promised dramatic increase in World Bank lending are emerging, but critics continue to attack the Bank’s lending practices, including its controversial use of conditionality.
Conditionality
Background
Combating tax flight: ending evasion and reducing avoidance
Norway, Germany, IMF, WOrld Bank and experts discuss tackling tax evasion and capital flight.
Rights
News
World Bank, NGOs clash at roundtable on odious debt
A recent roundtable meeting shows that some progress has been made in official understanding of odious debt, but that the World Bank is remaining very cautious on the topic.
Accountability
News
IMF rebukes Tajiks over false information
Tajikistan has gotten itself in hot water with the IMF over poor reporting of information while the country was borrowing money from the Fund.
Conditionality
News
NGOs urge Congressional intervention on IMF gold sales
A coalition of over 70 US NGOs, including large labour unions, has written to Congress to demand that planned IMF gold sales pay for debt relief as well administrative expenses.
Accountability
News
Calls for Bank to uphold human rights
As the UN human rights council holds its seventh session in Geneva in March, a variety of recent reports calling for greater human rights accountability of the World Bank have been published.
Finance
News
The IMF in Argentina: the search for relevance
Since Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner assumed the presidency in December the Fund has been involved with the renegotiation of Argentinean debt with the Paris Club and a controversy over official statistics.
Finance
News
IFIs foot dragging on key debt issues
The IFIs are struggling to catch up to global debates on odious debts and responsible financing; have failed to take action on vulture funds; and have been dragging their feet on debt relief programmes for Haiti and Liberia.
Featured briefings
3 July 2024
The Bretton Woods Observer: Summer 2024
3 July 2024
Is the World Bank rolling back commitments to citizen engagement, again?
Understanding the Bank’s chequered history with public, community and civil society participation is key for understanding what is at stake and what to do next.
3 June 2024
A way out for IMF reform
New paper analyses the IMF 16th Quota Review and identifies key governance reforms feasible in the current economic and geopolitical context.