World Bank- its Objectives and Functions

World Bank- its Objectives and Functions The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), commonly known as World Bank, was result of the Bretton Woods Conference. The main objectives behind setting up this international organisation were to aid the task of reconstruction of the war-affected economies of Europe and assist in the development of the underdeveloped nations of the world. For the first few years, the World Bank remained preoccupied with the task of restoring war-torn nations in Europe. Having achieved success in accomplishing this task by late 1950s, the World Bank turned its attention to the development of underdeveloped nations. Over the time, additional organisations have been set up under the umbrella of the World Bank.

As of today, the World Bank is a group of five international organisations responsible for providing finance to different countries. As mentioned earlier, the World Bank is entrusted with the task of economic growth and widening of the scope of international trade. During its initial years of inception, it placed more emphasis on developing infrastructure facilities like energy, transportation and others. No doubt all this has benefited the under-developed nations too, but the results were not found to be very satisfactory due to poor administrative structure, lack of institutional framework and non-availability of skilled labour in these countries. Realising these problems, the World Bank later decided to divert resources to bring about industrial and agricultural development in these countries.

Assistance is extended to different countries for raising cash crops so that their incomes rise and they may export the same for earning foreign exchange. The bank has also been providing resources for education, sanitation, health care and small scale enterprises. Today, the services provided by the World Bank have increased manifold. The World Bank is no longer confined to simply providing financial assistance for infrastructure development, agriculture, industry, health and sanitation. It is rather significantly involved in areas like removal of rural poverty through raising productivity, increasing income of the rural poor, providing technical support, and initiating research and cooperative ventures. The group and its affiliates headquartered in Washington DC catering to various financial needs are listed below on World Bank and its affiliates. World Bank and its Affiliates

Institution
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)     1945
International Financial Corporation (IFC)                                          1956
International Development Association (IDA)                                   1960
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)                          1988
International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) 1966

• Reasons for International Business
• International Trade Institutions and Trade Agreements