The International Monetary Fund, also known as the IMF or the Fund, was
conceived at a United Nations conference convened in Bretton Woods, New
Hampshire, U.S. in July 1944 (photo: UN/DPI 24476). The 45 governments
represented at that conference sought to build a framework for economic
cooperation that would avoid a repetition of the disastrous economic policies
that had contributed to the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Article I of the Articles of Agreement
sets out the IMF's main responsibilities:
- promoting international monetary cooperation;
- facilitating the expansion and balanced growth of
international trade;
- promoting exchange stability;
assisting in the establishment of a multilateral
system of payments; and - making its resources available (under adequate
safeguards) to members experiencing balance of payments difficulties.
More generally, the IMF is responsible
for ensuring the stability of the international monetary and financial system -
the system of international payments and exchange rates among national
currencies that enables trade to take place between countries. The Fund seeks
to promote economic stability and prevent crises; to help resolve crises when
they do occur; and to promote growth and alleviate poverty. It employs three
main functions, surveillance, technical assistance, and lending, to meet these
objectives.
The IMF works to promote global growth and economic stability and
thereby prevent economic crisis by encouraging countries to adopt sound economic
policies.
Surveillance is the regular dialogue
and policy advice that the IMF offers to each of its members. On a regular
basis, usually once each year, the Fund conducts in-depth appraisals of each
member country's economic situation. It discusses with the country's
authorities the policies that are most 
conducive to stable exchange rates and a growing and
prosperous economy. Members have the option to publish the Fund's assessment,
and the overwhelming majority of countries opt for transparency, making
extensive information on bilateral surveillance available to the public. The
IMF also combines information from individual consultations to form assessments
of global and regional developments and prospects. These views on the IMF's
multilateral surveillance are published twice each year in the World Economic Outlook
and the Global
Financial Stability Report.
Technical assistance and training are
offered - mostly free of charge - to help member countries strengthen their
capacity to design and implement effective policies. Technical assistance is
offered in several areas, including fiscal policy, monetary and exchange rate
policies, banking and financial system supervision and regulation, and
statistics.
In the event that member countries do experience
difficulties financing their balance of payments, the IMF is also a fund that
can be tapped to help in recovery.
Financial assistance is available to
give member countries the breathing room they need to correct balance of
payments problems. A policy program supported by IMF financing is designed by
the national authorities in close cooperation with the IMF, and continued
financial support is conditional on effective implementation of this program.
The IMF is also actively working to reduce poverty in
countries around the globe, independently and in collaboration with the World
Bank and other organizations.
The IMF provides financial support
through its concessional lending facility - the Poverty Reduction and Growth
Facility (PRGF) and the Exogenous Shocks Facility (ESF) - and through debt
relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and the
Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI).
In most low-income countries, this
support is underpinned by Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP). These
papers are prepared by country authorities—in consultation with civil society
and external development partners—to describe a comprehensive economic,
structural and social policy framework that is being implemented to promote
growth and reduce poverty in the country.
The IMF is accountable to the governments of its member countries. At
the apex of its organizational structure is its Board of Governors, which
consists of one Governor from each of the IMF's 185 member countries. All
Governors meet once each year at the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings; 24 of the
Governors sit on the International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) and
meet twice each year. The day-to-day work of the IMF is conducted at its
The IMF's resources
are provided by its member countries, primarily through payment of quotas,
which broadly reflect each country's economic size. The total amount of quotas
is the most important factor determining the IMF's lending capacity. The annual
expenses of running the Fund are met mainly by the difference between interest
receipts (on outstanding loans) and interest payments (on quota “deposits”).
IMF Annual Meeting
- 1946
1 1946
2 1947
5 1950
7 1952
10 1955
13 1958
16 1961
19 1964
22 1967 Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil
25 1970 Copenhagen,
Denmark
28 1973
31 1976
34 1979
37 1982 
40 1985
43 1988
46 1991
49 1994
51 1996
52 1997
53 1998
54 1999
55 2000
56 2001
57 2002
58 2003
59 2004 
60 2005
61 2006
62 2007
63 2008
64 2009
Links
The website of the IMF.
IMF in Wikipedia.
Flag of IMF in Flags of the
World.
Stamp catalogue - general issues
Belgium
Stamp catalogue - IMF/IBRD Annual Meetings
16 Austria
last revised: