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BACKGROUNDER:
THE IDB IN BRIEF
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- The Inter-American Development
Bank was created in 1959 to help accelerate the economic and social
development of its member countries in Latin America and the Caribbean
and to promote regional integration.
- To achieve its goals,
the Bank uses its own resources and those it raises on financial markets.
In 1994 its authorized capital was increased by $40 billion to $101
billion. In 1999 less developed countries eligible for assistance
from the Fund for Special Operations, the concessional window of the
Bank, received new support of $2.4 billion.
- The Bank has 46 member
countries: 28 in the Western Hemisphere, 16 in Europe, as well as
Israel and Japan. The Latin American and Caribbean countries hold
half the shares in the institution.
- The IDB's highest authority
is its Board of Governors, which meets annually to review Bank operations
and make major policy decisions. The Board of Executive Directors
(14 office holders and 14 alternates) is responsible for the conduct
of Bank operations.
- The Bank's president
is chosen by the governors for a five-year term. President Enrique
V. Iglesias, of Uruguay, was elected in 1988, re-elected in 1993 and
1998.
- As of the end of 2000
the Bank had approved loans totaling $106.6 billion for projects in
such areas as energy, agriculture and fisheries, transportation and
communications, industry and mining, environment, poverty reduction,
public health, economic and social reform, government modernization,
urban development, education, science and technology, export financing,
tourism and small enterprises.
- In 2000 the Bank approved
$5.3 billion in loans and guarantees and $66 million in grants for
technical cooperation.
- Priority areas for future
IDB support include those that promote social equity and poverty reduction;
economic reform and modernization of the state; regional integration;
private sector growth; and environmental protection. Education, small
business and microenterprise, and science and technology are also
key areas for development.
- The IDB administers the
Multilateral Investment Fund for Latin America and the Caribbean,
which finances activities to promote private sector growth, improve
the investment climate in the region, and mitigate the social impact
of economic reforms. In 2000 the MIF approved 78 projects for a total
of $115 million.
- The Inter-American Investment
Corporation, an autonomous Bank affiliate, supports small- and medium-sized
enterprises with loans and equity investments. In 2000 the IIC approved
20 transactions in 8 countries and four regional operations for a
total of $143 million.
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