World Bank
New economic institutions such as the World Bank, sought to spread the principles and practices associated with free market economies throughout the world by creating programs and lending money to countries, which allowed the people of that country to practice free market economic principles. The World Bank was originally created to help rebuild Europe from the vast destruction caused by World War Two. During the post WWII period the World Bank lent money to many European countries which has greatly helped them recover from their losses from WWII. For example the World Bank lent $250 million to France in 1947. That loan helped France rebuild its economy by creating jobs and infrastructure which later helped push the countries stagnant economy into the stronger free market economy of today.
The World Bank impacted political developments during the 20th century. For example, after the fall of communism in Romania the World Bank revived its relations with Romania by approving two loans to help finance Romania’s new government. Later the new government created new programs and reforms to free up prices and set up the basic laws and regulations required for a free market economy. This impacted the country in many ways since the price hikes were way to high causing protest across the country which caused the government to resign, and a transition government was created in September, 1991. During this transition period, the Bank renewed its partnership with Romania by giving more loans to show support of certain parts of the country’s reform program. The loans were successful in promoting trade.
Another example of how the World Bank has impacted society would be their efforts in spreading free market throughout the world by h...
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The July 1944 United Nations Financial and Monetary Conference, known as the Bretton Woods Conference, who created the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the forerunner of the World Bank, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). The “Bretton Woods system” was bolstered in 1947 with the addition of the General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), forerunner of the World Trade
Europe was a mess after World War II. Multiple governments and powerful leaders had been overthrown, leaving a power vacuum that left Europe in chaos. The violence of the war also left behind mass destruction and poverty . Businesses and factories as well as homes had been destroyed leaving people without work or a place to stay. This caused Europe to sink into a massive economic depression. This is where the United States decided to step in.
World War I came to an end in November of 1918, when the Treaty of Versailles was signed. This treaty ended the fighting and of many other results, it put the blame on Germany for the war. This resulted in Germany having to pay major reparation fee’s and put Germany in a financial hole. The treaty took away parts of Germany’s land and made it impossible for them to use their natural resources to profit from. The amount that Germany had to pay back was more then they could, and this started a chain reaction for the transfer of money. In 1924, The Dawes Plan was signed into action and the U.S. became a creditor nation. Germany owed around 32 billion in war reparations. They were unable to pay this, so the U.S. loaned Germany money, with that Germany paid European countries War Reparations, and with the reparation money they received, U.S exports were able to be bought. This benefited the U.S. because the loans would have to be paid back with interest, and it let the economy experience a boost because goods were able to be exported. The Dawes Plan boosted the American economy, while facilitating other European countries’ attempts to reestablish a stable financial state after World War One. This time period in the 1920’s is referred to as the ‘roaring twen...
The end of the World War II marked the beginning of a new era for the world economy. The Bretton Woods System refers to an agreement made at an international conference between 44 nations in 1944 at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States of America (hereby U.S.) on the 22nd of July 1944. It was aimed at maintaining stability in the monetary system in the post World War II period. “In an effort to free international trade and fund postwar reconstruction the member states agreed to fix their exchange rates by tying their currencies to the U.S. dollar.” The fundamental of this system was liberalizing trade policy and promoting free trade. The U.S. dollar was linked to gold as a show of its dependability in the eyes of the rest of the world, $35 equaled 1 ounce of gold. They followed an adjustable fixed exchange rate (1% band). It set up the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), which is a part of the World Bank today. Member nations monetary contributions to the setting up of these institutes determined their number of votes as well as their economic prowess
Proponents have a strong belief in free markets and limited governments intervention. According to Preble (2010), globalization has led to the creation of jobs, higher living standards and a higher variety of goods available to consumers. International trade is one of the driving forces behind globalization. Countries specialize in specific goods wherein it has a comparative advantage. This results in a higher efficiency and productivity and ultimately leading to an improvement of the living standards. As a consequence, export increases. Hereto, more jobs are created, a higher variety of goods are available and international competition has increased. This results in lower prices, keeping the inflation in check (Preble, 2010). Furthermore, Preble (2010) states that the increase of trade in goods and services, foreign direct investment and cross-border investment have been important for the success of globalization. Other important benefits, mentioned by the proponents of globalization, are the promotion of information exchange and high understanding of a variety of cultures. Globalization has led to a world where “democracy has triumph over autocracy” (BBC News, 2000, as stated in Preble, 2010, p. 334).
The development of free-market economics has, since the 18th century, resulted in the spread of a set of ideas, creeds and practices all over the developed and much of the developing world. Today, the globalisation of trade, capital, technology and innovation has accelerated competitive conditions for businesses all over the world. Globalisation may be defined as the opening of markets to the forces of neoliberalism and capitalism; it is characterised by the free movement of people, talent, skills, capital (intellectual, social and economic) across international borders. All kinds of barriers have either been swept away, diffused or made obsolete by the forces of globalisation: trade barriers, subsidies, geographical boundaries, linguistic and cultural differences. Technological advancements have pulled the world closer and, in the process, affected how labour relations and worker/employer relations operate and develop. The multinational corporation as well as the public sector alike are affected by global competition.
1. As far as peace keeping methods go, the reputation of the United Nations is very pitiable. This is not only because they have not been doing their job to it’s fullest extent, but also because the member states on the security council haven’t given the UN the power it needs if it is to be a successful force in peace keeping methods.
the effect that the work of the IMF and the World Bank have had on the
(United Nations Children's Fund [UNICF], n.d.)The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is a leading advocate for women and children rights. Founded in 1946 and active in 157 countries and territories around the world. The UNICEF has committed it resources to achieve results for children in five major areas:
Established in 1944 and taking its name from the New Hampshire town where the agreements were drawn up, the Bretton Woods conference was a gathering of finance ministers from Allied countries following the end of the Second World War. Under American leadership, the group met to discuss the failings of World War I’s Treaty of Versailles and the creation of a new international monetary system which could fund post war reconstruction, economic stability and facilitate international trade. This conference led to the establishment of two of the most important post war economic institutions, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, now known as the World Bank (An introduction to the WTO and GATT, pp. 42, 2003). Originally, the architects of the international trade system in the post war ...
... policies. People will continue to suffer in silence because of the world’s greed. So, while we enjoy our cheaply made goods and over consume the planet into demise, we never know of choose not to know the pain that went into the productions of those goods. Globalization may be championed as a gateway to financial growth for all nations, but only certain nations benefit from it. Global trading and integration has a negative effect on undeveloped nations and developed nations in many ways including; political systems, sovereignty, economy, way of life and much more. Earlier in the essay I asked ‘do the pros outweigh the cons when it comes to globalization’ and from my research I don’t see any real benefit. I don’t believe we should eliminate global business, but better the already lacking regulations and probably increase the standard of living equally for the world.
World Bank Group - the group that consists of five organizations created in different times and functionally united,organizationally and geographically, the purpose of which is providing financial and technical assistance to developing countries.
According to Pease (2012), an international organization are conceived as formal institutions whose members are states and these are divided into two sub-groups called intergovernmental organizations (IGO) and non-governmental organizations (NGO). An IGO consists of states that voluntarily join, contribute financially, and assist in the decision making process. All of their members’ resolves, structures, and administrative protocols are clearly outlined in the treaty or charter. An example of an IGO is the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). First, all IGOs comes from an established government which can be further categorized by rules of membership which qualifies NATO because it is an alliance of about 30 members from North America and Europe. Secondly, IGOs can have limited participation in membership or restricted membership which qualifies NATO because this is a security agreement and it limits its involvement by confining it to an amalgamation of specific governmental, geographical, and martial considerations. Thirdly, IGOs are categorized by their purpose meaning the member can be multi or general purpose organization and they can take on any global issue (Pease, 2012). This qualifies NATO because over the years the organization has participated in several international war related issues such as the Korean War and the Cold War. Most recently, NATO, for the first time in history had to engage Article 5 of the treaty after the 9/11 attacks in New York City and the no-fly zone in the country of Libya.
World Bank. Independent Evaluation Group. World Bank (2013). Results and performance of the World Bank Group: Volume 1. Retrieved from World Bank website: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/PROJECTS/Resources/40940-1367867968385/2013_WorldBankforResults.pdf
Fifty-one countries established the United Nations also known as the UN on October 24, 1945 with the intentions of preserving peace through international cooperation and collective security. Over the years the UN has grown in numbers to include 185 countries, thus making the organization and its family of agencies the largest in an effort to promote world stability. Since 1954 the UN and its organizations have received the Nobel Peace Prize on 5 separate occasions. The first in 1954 awarded to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, for its assistance to refugees, and finally in 1988 to the United Nations Peace-keeping Forces, for its peace-keeping operations. As you can see, the United Nations efforts have not gone without notice.