| Summary: | The World Bank - formally named the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) - along with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were both founded at an international conference held at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in July, 1944. Their founders intended that the Bank would act as a development institution and the Fund would be responsible for establishing an orderly world monetary system and assisting member countries with balance or payment problems. The material in this bibliography covers the World Bank and its affiliated institutions, and has been carefully chosen to give as wide a view as possible of its objectives, history, and policies.The Bank's first loans were made to countries in Western Europe to finance reconstruction after the Second World War. Subsequently, the institution's main purpose has been to provide technical assistance and finance for policies and projects intended to promote economic development in the developing countries, with most of the funding obtained"through the issue of World Bank bonds in the world's capital markets. Although such financing continues, in recent years the Bank has extended and diversified its activities, which has led to closer collaboration with the IMF. Its policies have changed from an emphasis on projects to broader aspects of economic policy.The Bank's structure is complex. The World Bank itself consists of the IBRD and its loan associate, the International Development Association (IDA), as well as the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). Most of the publications listed in The World Bank are hi English and should be available in libraries throughout the English-speaking world. This bibliography will be a very useful reference tool for students, researchers, librarians, and all those interested in the field of development.
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