Source: CCTV.com
04-03-2009 09:07
Special Report: G20 Summit in LondonDespite differences, the financial and central bank chiefs of various countries have agreed to increase the funding of the International Monetary Fund and expedite its reform at the G20 financial summit. Let's take a look at the background of the IMF.
 |
| The International Monetary Fund was established in 1945 following World War Two. |
The International Monetary Fund was established in 1945 following World War Two. Its original aim is to rebuild the international monetary order and stablize the financial market.
It has long dominated by the United States and developed countries. Europeans have the right to choose the IMF chief for years and currently have 32 percent of the IMF voting rights. The US has the largest single share, with voting rights of 16.7 percent. China, despite being the world's third largest economy, only has a 3.7 percent share. India has 1.9 percent.
Despite contributing greatly to the world financial system, the defects of IMF have become more and more obvious with the changing of the world economy in past years. Criticism say it fails to act effectively to deal with the current crisis and does not reflect the realities of the 21st century, namely, the growing importance of the developing countries. Those factors have made the IMF reform all the more necessary.
Developing countries are calling for effective steps that should be taken to increase their say and representation in the world monetary body.
Meanwhile, IMF is now facing sever shortage in lending resources. Analysts say it should take substantial reform on voting rights and governance structure to bolster its credibility and pool more funds from emerging economies.
Click for more news in Biz China>>
Editor:Xiong Qu
