The Future of the World Bank and IMF

Ngaire Woods presented points from her new book, The Globalizers: The IMF, the World Bank, and their Borrowers, questioning whether the time has come to rethink what these multilateral institutions do and how they do it. She asked whether the IMF and the World Bank were U.S.-dominated institutions. Topics included their impact on the economy of their borrowers, particularly Mexico and Latin America; the Russian experience; and sub-Saharan Africa. She suggested that IMF and the World Bank should not focus country by country, but should consider global imbalances, monetary cooperation and other international issues.

Mr. Mallaby, the author of The World’s Banker, and Mr. DeTray commented extensively on Dr. Woods' proposals. The participants then responded to audience members' questions. close