Bank: An Overview the World

¶ … Bank: An overview

The World Bank was created in 1944 as part of the international efforts to create a world community of institutions that would prevent the type of poverty and conflicts that resulted in the Second World War. Born of the Bretton-Woods agreement, "the Bank was designed to avoid future world wars by ensuring an open international trading system and global financial stability. Public loans could be offered for economic development that would otherwise be unavailable to countries with poorly developed industries. The loan strategy has gradually evolved from the support of public infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, and power plants, to the provision of capital for other inputs necessary for development, namely the maintenance of educational and health services" (Weeks 2005).

The World Bank since its conception has thus turned from its focus on rehabilitating war-torn Europe to improving conditions in the developing world. Its major branches comprise the original International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Poverty reduction; sustainable globalization; generating economic solutions to the special challenges of nations in a state of government transition; financing new projects of middle-income nations; and addressing cross-border issues such as climate change, infectious diseases, and trade as they relate to the economy are all within its purview ("About us," the World Bank, 2009).

Successes

The Bank has taken a proactive role worldwide. It has attempted to adopt a vocal role in addressing concerns of biodiversity, ozone depletion, narcotics, crime, corruption, and post-conflict reconstruction, particularly in the Balkans and West Bank.

Failures