What was the Bretton Woods Conference?
In 1944 the 44 delegates of the United and Associated Nations met in New Hampshire in the United States at a conference organised by the US. They established an international economic order based loosely on currency stabilisation and liberalisation of international trade, which became known as the Bretton Woods system. The system established clear and unequivocal values for each currency, and eliminated practices, such as competitive devaluations, that had brought investment and trade to a virtual standstill during the 1930s. After much negotiation under difficult wartime conditions, the international community accepted the system and an organization to supervise it. How is the IMF run? The Washington-based IMF is run by a board of 24 directors and employs 2,700 staff, headed by Horst Kohler, the managing director. Which countries control the organisation? Membership numbers 182 countries and is open to any state that can adhere to the IMF charter of rights and obligations. Votes are b
