World Bank Group

World Bank Group mission is to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet.

• The World Bank Group is a unique global partnership of five institutions working for sustainable solutions that reduce poverty and build shared prosperity in developing countries.
• The Bank Group works with country governments, the private sector, civil society organizations, regional development banks, think tanks, and other international institutions on issues ranging from climate change, conflict, and food security to education, agriculture, finance, and trade.

While the World Bank Group consists of five development institutions.

• International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) provides loans, credits, and grants.
• International Development Association (IDA) provides low- or no-interest loans to low-income countries.
• The International Finance Corporation (IFC) provides investment, advice, and asset management to companies and governments.
• The Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA) insures lenders and investors against political risk such as war.
• The International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) settles investment-disputes between investors and countries.

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and International Development Association (IDA) form the World Bank, which provides financing, policy advice, and technical assistance to governments of developing countries. 

All of these efforts support the Bank Group’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty by 2030 and boosting shared prosperity of the poorest 40% of the population in all countries.

• To become a member of the Bank, under the IBRD Articles of Agreement, a country must first join the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• Membership in IDA, IFC, and MIGA are conditional on membership in IBRD.
• Membership in ICSID is available to IBRD members, and those which are a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), on the invitation of the ICSID Administrative Council by a vote of two-thirds of its members.

• Ease of Doing Business (Stopped publishing recently).
• Human Capital Index.
• World Development Report.

• Its mandate to increasing global economic growth and eliminating poverty.
• The Bank only finances sovereign governments directly or projects backed by sovereign governments.
• The IBRD focuses its services on middle-income countries or countries where the per capita income ranges from $1,026 to $12,475 per year. 
• At the same time, middle-income countries are home to 70% of the world’s poor people, as the benefits of this economic growth are unevenly distributed across their populations.
• IBRD raises most of its funds in the world’s financial markets. This has allowed it to provide more than $500 billion in loans to alleviate poverty around the world since 1946, with its shareholder governments paying in about $14 billion in capital.
• IBRD has maintained a triple-A rating since 1959. This high credit rating allows it to borrow at low cost and offer middle-income developing countries access to capital on favourable terms — helping ensure that development projects go forward in a more sustainable manner.
• IBRD earns income every year from the return on its equity and from the small margin it makes on lending. This pays for World Bank operating expenses, goes into reserves to strengthen the balance sheet, and provides an annual transfer of funds to IDA, the fund for the poorest countries.

• IDA is the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries. IDA aims to reduce poverty by providing loans (called “credits”) and grants for programs that boost economic growth, reduce inequalities, and improve people’s living conditions.
• IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 75 poorest countries, 39 of which are in Africa, and is the single largest source of donor funds for basic social services in these countries.
• IDA supports a range of development activities that pave the way toward equality, economic growth, job creation, higher incomes, and better living conditions. IDA’s work covers primary education, basic health services, clean water and sanitation, agriculture, business climate improvements, infrastructure, and institutional reforms.
• IDA lends money on concessional terms. This means that IDA credits have a zero or very low-interest charge and repayments are stretched over 30 to 38 years, including a 5- to 10-year grace period. IDA also provides grants to countries at risk of debt distress.
• To borrow from the IDA’s concessional lending programs, a country’s gross national income (GNI) per capita must not exceed $ 1,145 (the fiscal year 2019).
• IDA also provides significant levels of debt relief through the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI).

• IFC is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector in developing countries. The Bank Group has set two goals for the world to achieve by 2030: end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity in every country.
• It is a private-sector arm of the World Bank Group, to advance economic development by investing in for-profit and commercial projects for poverty reduction and promoting development.
• IFC raises virtually all funds for lending activities through the issuance of debt obligations in international capital markets. Borrowings are diversified by country, currency, source, and maturity in order to provide flexibility and cost-effectiveness.
• IFC makes loans to businesses and private projects generally with maturities of seven to twelve years. It may provide longer-term loans or extend grace periods if a project is deemed to warrant it.
• IFC attempts to guide businesses toward more sustainable practices particularly with regards to having good governance, supporting women in business, and proactively combating climate change.

• ICSID was established in 1966 by the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (the ICSID Convention).
• The ICSID Convention is a multilateral treaty formulated by the Executive Directors of the World Bank to further the Bank’s objective of promoting international investment.
• States have agreed on ICSID as a forum for investor-State dispute settlement in most international investment treaties and in numerous investment laws and contracts.
• Bilateral investment treaties (BITs) are proliferating, many such treaties contain text that refers present and future investment disputes to the ICSID.
• ICSID provides for settlement of disputes by conciliation, arbitration or fact-finding.
• Each case is considered by an independent Conciliation Commission or Arbitral Tribunal, after hearing evidence and legal arguments from the parties. A dedicated ICSID case team is assigned to each case and provides expert assistance throughout the process.
• An ICSID award according to Article 53 of the ICSID Convention is final and binding and immune from appeal or annulment, other than as provided in the ICSID Convention.
• India is not a member of ICSID.

• MIGA is a member of the World Bank Group and its mandate is to promote cross-border investment in developing countries by providing guarantees (political risk insurance and credit enhancement) to investors and lenders.
• MIGA was created to complement public and private sources of investment insurance against non-commercial risks (currency inconvertibility and transfer restriction, government expropriation, war, terrorism, and civil disturbance, breaches of contract, and the non-honouring of financial obligations) in developing countries.
• The agency opened for business as a legally separate and financially independent entity. Membership was open to all IBRD members.
• MIGA aims to promote foreign direct investment into developing countries to support economic growth, reduce poverty and improve people’s lives.