The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international
organization that was initiated in 1944 at the Bretton Woods
Conference and formally created in 1945 by 29 member
countries. The IMF's stated goal was to stabilize exchange
rates and assist the reconstruction of the world’s international
payment system post-World War II. Countries contribute
money to a pool through a quota system from which countries
with payment imbalances can borrow
funds temporarily. Through this activity and others such as
surveillance of its members' economies and policies, the IMF
works to improve the economies of its member countries.
The IMF describes itself as “an organization of 188 countries,
working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure
financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high
employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce
poverty around the world. The organization's stated
objectives are to promote international economic cooperation,
international trade, employment, and exchange rate stability,
including by making financial resources available to member
countries to meet balance of payments needs. Its
headquarters are in Washington, D.C., United States.
Member countries
The 188 members of the IMF include 187 members of the UN and the Republic of Kosovo. All members of the IMF are alsoInternational Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) members and vice versa.
Former members are Cuba (which left in 1964 and the Republic of China, which was ejected from the UN in 1980 after losing the support of then U.S. President Jimmy Carter and was replaced by the People's Republic of China.However, "Taiwan Province of China" is still listed in the official IMF indices. Apart from Cuba, the other UN states that do not belong to the IMF are North Korea, Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, and Nauru. Also non-members are Cook Islands, Niue, Vatican City, Palestine and the states with limited recognition (other than Kosovo).
The former Czechoslovakia was expelled in 1954 for "failing to provide required data" and was readmitted in 1990, after the Velvet Revolution. Poland withdrew in 1950—allegedly pressured by the Soviet Union—but returned in 1986.
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