Canada and the World Bank Group

Canada is a founding member of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) since its establishment in 1945, as well as of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) (1956), the International Development Association (IDA) (1960), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) (1988).

 

Canada has consistently been among the top 10 largest (in percentage terms) subscribers to the capital or contributors to replenishments of each organization's funding base.

The World Bank benefits from having among its leading members a country that has long been a strong proponent of multilateralism. Enshrining that concept as the foundation of the international order has been a hallmark of Canada's foreign policy since the end of World War II.

Canada participated in the 1944 Bretton Woods conference that led to the creation of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund and formally joined both organizations in 1945.

 

For Canada, membership in the world's premier multilateral development financing institution enables it to leverage not only its funds, but also its own knowledge and capabilities for greater impact on poverty reduction and sustainable development worldwide. For its part, the World Bank recognizes Canada not only as a significant financial contributor but also as a steadfast partner in the effort to achieve its goals, which today are aimed squarely at targeting poverty reduction in the developing world.

As a shareholder of the IBRD, Canada has a capital share of 2.85 per cent and a voting share of 2.78 per cent. Canada’s contribution to the latest replenishment of IDA, the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries reduce poverty through interest-free loans and grants, represents 3.75 per cent donor share and a voting share of 2.96 per cent. See Annual Report for more information.

 

The Governor delegates day-to-day handling of Canada ’s diverse interests at the Bank to the Executive Director for Canada. Executive Directors reside in Washingtonand meet regularly throughout the year (normally at least twice a week) to review and act on lending operations, new policy directions, and financial matters. In keeping with the World Bank’s information disclosure policy, the monthly Board Calendar is a public document. Executive Directors make up the World Bank's Board of Governors.

 

At the Board level, Canada is responsible for its own interests and those of Irelandand 11 other Commonwealth countries that have grouped together into one constituency.  The Canadian Executive Director is elected to the Board by the governments of Canada, Ireland, and the Caribbean-region countries of Antigua & Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent & the Grenadines.

 

The Canadian Executive Director is supported in his functions by an Alternate Executive Director from one of the Caribbean members of the constituency.

 

The Department of Finance Canada coordinates input from Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and channels Canada’s unified policy advice through the Executive Director to the World Bank’s senior management.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is Canada's Governor for the Bank, CIDA President Margaret Biggs is the Alternate Governor, and Marie-Lucie Morin is the Executive Director.

 

Click on the links for the Canadian Executive Director’s office website and their contact information. 

Canadian nationals number around 400 out of a total of over 10,000. Like all World Bank staff, they are considered international civil servants and do not represent Canadaor Canadian interests in the institution, with the exception of the Canadian Executive Director and his advisors.