International Monetary Fund (IMF)

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The IMF is an intergovernmental organization that offers financial advice and assistance to its member states. It was conceived at the end of World War II, in July 1944 with forty five member states in a meeting held in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States of America (International Monetary Fund) In the meeting, the members agreed to establish a framework for international economic cooperation that would prevent economic crises such as the Great Depression from happening again (Digital films, 2009). Although the IMF was conceived in 1944, it came into formal existence in 1945 and started its operations in March 1947 after the signing of its Articles of Agreement by its first 29 members. The members of the IMF started increasing in the late 1950s and 1960s when most African countries applied for membership after receiving independence. Today, the organization is comprised of 186 member states (Digital films, 2009). The membership to the organization is open to any state so long as it accepts the statutes of the organization and conducts foreign policy. The organization rece...

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