Bretton Woods
Update 63
New international economic architecture
The financial and economic crises have brought out a plethora of ideas for reforming the international financial architecture. Below, we highlight a few of the many different blueprints.
Financial and food crises
While food commodity prices have dropped from their peaks earlier in the year, the role financial liberalisation played in causing the crisis and whether it can help resolve it are still being debated.
Awash with cash or hard up?
As economies slump across the world, the World Bank and the IMF are looking to pump out cash, but while the Bank
IEG evaluation of World Bank TA limited
The recently released IEG evaluation Using Knowledge to Improve Development Effectiveness, examining the Bank’s economic sector work (ESW) and non-lending technical assistance (TA) between 2000-2006 presents a limited review.
Back from the dead
A few months ago pundits were calling time on the Fund, but the financial crisis’ impact on emerging markets has brought it roaring back to life, with its usual dose of austerity and conditionality.
IFI governance reform: rumbling slowly on?
Minor changes to World Bank governance were agreed at this year’s annual meetings, with a timetable for further reform that could stretch to 2011. As pressure grows for fundamental reform of the international financial architecture, it is unclear whether this process will continue, and if the issue of IMF governance will be reopened.
Indian environment ministry rejects Climate Investment Funds
The Indian ministry of environment and forests rejected the World Bank’s recently finalised climate investment funds (CIFs), a snub that may prove damaging, since India would have been a significant client.
World Bank monitoring weak
This September’s Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) Annual Review of Development Effectiveness (ARDE) highlights weaknesses in Bank monitoring and evaluation systems and provides worrying evidence that the Bank is not structured to work effectively on global public goods.
International financial architecture
National and international financial bodies frequently overlap both in function and membership. Below are some of the main regulatory or influential bodies within the financial system. In most, the IMF is a participant, and in some, a central player.
The World Bank, the IFC and the antecedents of the financial crisis
The financial crisis seemed to come out of the blue, but Paulo dos Santos of the University of London argues that the ground was laid by financial sector privatisation, liberalisation and deregulation. Far from these trends being confined to the rich world, the World Bank and the IFC have played a key role in pushing…
Your support of the Bretton Woods Project is crucial
With the system of global economic governance in crisis, there has never been a more crucial time for the Bretton Woods Project to work for change that puts poverty, human rights and the environment at its heart.
Dam wrong
A forthcoming World Bank commissioned book on large dams stresses their purported economic benefits whilst inadequately addressing serious social and environmental costs. The book is a further indicator of the Bank’s preference for large dams.
International economic architecture: cleaning up the mess?
The G20 group of large economies met in Washington on 15 November to discuss reform of the international economic architecture, but the summit failed to live up to the ‘Bretton Woods 2’ label some had given it. As the economic crisis continues to unfold, pressure for fundamental change to rebuild and repair the crumbling financial…
People’s Tribunal slams Bank’s record in India
The September jury verdict of the Independent People’s Tribunal on the World Bank in India found that the Bank has “caused grievous and irreversible damage to those they intend to serve.”
Inadequate implementation of IFC standards
Two new resources have been released by the Forest Peoples Programme.
2008 Bankspeak and resources
Continuing a much-heralded tradition at the Bretton Woods Project, the first issue of 2009 will feature ‘Bankspeak of the year’ and ‘resources of the year’.
Ama Marston joins the project
We are delighted to welcome Ama Marston as our new policy officer, taking over from Lucy Baker, who has gone to do her PhD at the University of East Anglia.
World Bank’s aid allocation may undermine growth
Whereas under SAPs of the 1990s loans were given in return for agreements to implement policy reform, now they are disbursed conditionally on the reforms already achieved. An article in Development Viewpoint by Elisa Van Waeyenberge examines the World Bank’s altered conditionality procedures:
IMF working group on sovereign wealth funds agrees voluntary code
In October the working group released generally accepted principles and practises (GAPP), consisting of 24 voluntary principles, endorsed by the IMFC at the annual meetings.