60th anniversary
of the IMF and Korea
By Dr. Oh Jong-nam, Executive Director of International Monetary Fund

While the International Monetary Fund is the most widely-known international financial organization in Korea, still many are not aware of the IMF's organizational structure nor of how important decisions are made within.
The IMF is governed by a Board of Governors, an Executive Board, and a Managing Director supported by three Deputy Managing Directors. Two advisory bodies, the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) and the Development Committee (DC), provide a bridge between the Board of Governors and the Executive Board.
The Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the IMF, consisting of one Governor for each of the organization's 184 member countries. Governors are usually Ministers of Finance or Governors of central banks. Thus, the ultimate decision-making power in the IMF is located in the member countries, which are shareholders of the IMF.
The Board of Governors meets annually in joint session with its counterpart in the World Bank, usually in September or October. Since 1953, two consecutive annual meetings are held in Washington, D.C., U.S.A., and every third meeting is held in a member country other than the United States. In 1985, the Annual Meetings took place in Seoul, which was the 14th foreign city to host the Annul Meetings. At that time, Korea celebrated the 30th anniversary as a member of the IMF and the World Bank.
The Annual Meetings are the largest and most comprehensive gathering of global financial representatives in the world. These Meetings attract more than 10,000 participants each year, ranging from financial dignitaries to members of the press. During the Meetings, representatives of the 184 IMF-World Bank member countries unite to discuss the course of global economic development and formulate underpinning policy strategies. A number of forums are also organized to facilitate interaction among government delegations, IMF-World Bank Group staff, private sector and civil society representatives and journalists. The findings of these discussions are readily communicated to the public via the media to ensure the transparency of the IMF and World Bank Group.
Each country's delegation usually includes its Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank or their respective equivalents. The rest of the delegation is comprised of advisors and other government representatives, totaling approximately 3,500 participants from all delegations. To keep the financial and economic communities abreast of the developments at the Annual Meetings, the organizations invite key members of the business arena who have a continuing interest in, or operational relationships with, the IMF and World Bank Group as observers and special guests. These participants draw from commercial organizations, public and private investment institutions and government bodies. Representatives from other financial institutions (both public and private), commercial enterprises, non-government organizations and private individuals can also seek to attend the Annual Meetings as visitors in their own interests. The number of observers, special guests and visitors participating in the Annual Meetings total approximately 5,000 each year. Management and staff of the IMF and World Bank Group are also present.
This year's Annual Meetings hold special significance to Korea compared to past ones. This 60th anniversary of the IMF-World Bank coincides with the 50th anniversary of Korea's accession to the Bretton Woods institutions. In addition, for the first time ever, the Annual Meetings took place with two Korean Executive Directors both in the IMF and the World Bank. Most importantly, the Korean Governor, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Han Duk-Soo, took part in the IMFC and the DC meetings for the first time in history, discussing outlook, risks, and policy responses of the global economy and financial markets, as well as the IMF objectives and medium-term strategy.
The IMFC consists of only 24 Governors of the IMF. Matters they discuss in the Meetings encompass the management and adaptation of the international monetary and financial system, including the continuing operation of the adjustment process, and developments in global liquidity and the transfer of real resources to developing countries. The IMFC issues a communiqu?after the meeting summarizing the outcome of its discussions and giving strategic directions to the IMF's policy work for the near to medium term. On the basis of the communiq?, the Managing Director draws up a work program for the IMF for the coming 6-12 months. In this sense, the IMFC is the supreme body of the IMF.
The DC is a joint ministerial committee of the Boards of Governors of the IMF and the World Bank Group. Members of the DC are governors of the World Bank, whose main task is to maintain oversight of the development process, giving urgent attention to the problems of least developed countries and those developing countries most seriously affected by balance of payments difficulties.
When Korea joined the IMF in 1955, the nation's per capita GDP was merely US$67. In the last half a century, it has grown to be 11th in the world in economic size. Nonetheless, it was only very recently that Korea began to participate in some of the most important and influential meetings concerning world economy. My hope for the future is to soon see Koreans addressing major international assemblies and conferences, chairing or moderating discussions of world leaders and shapers of economy, encouraging economic growth not only within its borders, but also motivating other nations to fulfill their own economic potential. nw

Dr. Oh Jong-nam, Executive Director of International Monetary Fund