The International Financial Institutions (IFIs) Working Group is pleased to welcome you to the launch of our new website. We intend for this platform to serve as a central source of information on the IFIs for public policy professionals on Capitol Hill, in the U.S. Government, and in civil society.
The IFI Working Group is a diverse coalition of non-profit organizations. We collectively believe in the value of IFIs in addressing global development challenges, advancing multilateralism, and setting high standards across the development finance landscape. Our membership includes the Bank Information Center, BRAC, Bread for the World Institute, Bretton Woods Committee, Center for Global Development, InterAction, International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, ONE Campaign, Oxfam, Publish What You Fund, Results, and the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition.
Relying on the support of their member countries, the IFIs provide financial and technical assistance to developing countries with the goal of supporting economic growth and raising the standard of living. For many developing countries, the IFIs are the largest source of international financing and play a key partnership role in support of countries’ development agendas.
For over 75 years, and particularly in times of international crisis, the United States has turned to the IFIs to effectively leverage scarce resources for development and promote strong standards for aid effectiveness, transparency and accountability. The IFIs are uniquely positioned to pool and allocate resources from donor countries, as well as to borrow at the lowest rates in capital markets, which increases the ability of the U.S. to achieve positive outcomes beyond what it can accomplish through bilateral programs alone. In addition to various lending instruments that provide low or no interest financing, as well as grant assistance to low income countries, the IFIs also provide unparalleled data and knowledge. They serve as key convenors of both public and private sources of development, which will be critical as we look forward to “building back better” from the unprecedented economic and health crisis brought on by COVID-19.
The IFI Working Group is committed to promoting constructive U.S. leadership at the IFIs and we seek to increase awareness among policymakers of the value of these institutions and how they support U.S. development priorities. We aim to see the U.S. strengthen its commitment to effective and informed engagement at the IFIs.
If you work in the development finance space, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact Caroline Vesey at cvesey@bankinformationcenter.org.