The United Kingdom became a member of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the World Bank, in December 1945 and played a role in the founding of the Bretton Woods institutions (World Bank and International Monetary Fund).
The United Kingdom and the World Bank work together to develop policies on a wide range of issues, such as conflict prevention, governance, health, and education – trying to enable millions in the poorest countries to be immunized, gain access to roads and clean water, and become teachers, among other benefits. The Bank Group’s expertise, knowledge, and ability to work across sectors and countries helps further the goals of human, economic, and sustainable development around the world.
The UK is also a member of the World Bank’s fund for the poorest, International Development Association (IDA), which it joined in 1960, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) as of 1956, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) as of 1988 and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) as of 1967.
The UK remains a major shareholder in the World Bank Group institutions and an influential partner in global efforts to reduce poverty.
The World Bank in London is working to promote consensus around the timeline for progress abroad and build a platform for collaboration between the World Bank and the United Kingdom. It does this by fostering greater understanding of the World Bank’s project and activities and building relationships with key stakeholders. such as government, members of parliament, civil society organisations, think tanks, the personal sector, academia and the media.
It also supports outreach activities, in collaboration with UK partners, such as organizing and supporting conferences, seminars and other occasions on progression topics. The workplace serves as an access point for teams in the UK who want to communicate with World Bank staff around the world or access the wealth of data published through the Bank, and answers questions from the media. It also aims to create opportunities for collaboration between the UK and the World Bank Group through co-financing, budgeting and joint analytical work in sectors and regions of mutual interest.
Governor of the World Bank
The World Bank Board of Governors is the Bank’s senior decision-making body. The Governors meet twice a year. The Governors have the power to admit and suspend members of the World Bank Group, increase or decrease the authorized capital stock, determine the distribution of the net income of the Bank, and decide on the World Bank Group’s overall strategic direction.
For existing and exchange governors’ offices, see this document.
World Bank Executive Director The Governor delegates responsibility for overseeing the day-to-day affairs of the United Kingdom’s interests within the Bank to the United Kingdom’s Executive Director (ED). The Managing Director is the Governor’s representative on the World Bank’s 25-member Board of Directors. Managing managers live in Washington and typically meet twice a week to make decisions on issues, projects, and monetary and debt policies that have an effect on the overall operations of the World Bank Group.
Shares and Voting Power The World Bank Group has a weighted system of voting. All members of the Bank receive votes consisting of share votes (one vote for each share of the Bank’s capital stock held by the member) plus basic votes (calculated so that the sum of all basic votes is equal to 5.55% of the sum of basic votes and share votes for all members). The voting power distribution differs from agency to agency within the World Bank Group.
For the latest voting status, visit the Voting Powers page.
For information on United Kingdom’s aid flows as a donor, please visit the AidFlows UK page.
Find out what World Bank Group facilities are doing in the UK.
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