Multilateral Development Banks: U.S. Contributions FY1998-FY2009

Jonathan E. Sanford
Specialist in International Trade and Finance

This report shows in tabular form how much the Administration requested and how much Congress appropriated during the past 11 years for U.S. payments to the multilateral development banks (MDBs). It also provides a brief description of the MDBs and the ways they fund their operations. It will be updated periodically. Three companion reports provide further information on the MDBs. See CRS Report RS20793, Multilateral Development Banks: Basic Background, by Jonathan E. Sanford, CRS Report RS20791, Multilateral Development Banks: Procedures for U.S. Participation, by Jonathan E. Sanford, and CRS Report RS22134, International Financial Institutions: Funding U.S. Participation, by Jonathan E. Sanford. For further information, see CRS Report RL33969, The World Bank's International Development Association (IDA), by Martin A. Weiss, and CRS Report RS21437, The Asian Development Bank, by Martin A. Weiss.


The United States is a member of five MDBs: the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB), Asian Development Bank (AsDB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). It also belongs to two similar organizations, the North American Development Bank (NADBank) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). For FY2009, the Administration proposed and Congress appropriated funds for U.S. participation in two new World Bank facilities, the Clean Technology Fund (CTF) and the Strategic Climate Fund (SCF).


The MDBs have similar programs, though they all differ somewhat in their institutional structure and emphasis. Each has a president and executive board that manages or supervises all of its programs and operations. Except for the EBRD, which makes only market-based loans, all the MDBs make both market-based loans to middle-income developing countries and concessional loans to the poorest countries. Their loans are made to governments or to organizations having government repayment guarantees. In each MDB, the same staff prepares both the market-based and the concessional loans, using the same standards and procedures for both.1 The main differences between them are the repayment terms and the countries which qualify for them.2 

The MDBs also have specialized facilities which have their own operating staff and management but report to the bank's president and executive board. The World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the IDB's Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) make loans to or equity investments in private sector firms in developing countries (on commercial terms) without government repayment guarantees. The AsDB makes similar loans from its market-rate loan account. The World Bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) underwrites private investments in developing countries (on commercial terms) to protect against noneconomic risk. At the IDB, the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) helps Latin American countries institute policy reforms aimed at stimulating domestic and international investment. It also funds worker retraining and programs for small- and micro-enterprises. The MIF originated as part of President Bush's 1990 Enterprise for the Americas Initiative (EAI.) 

The NADBank was created by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to fund environmental infrastructure projects in the U.S.-Mexico border region. The International Fund for Agricultural Development, created in 1977, focuses on reducing poverty and hunger in poor countries through agricultural development. The Global Environment Facility (GEF) funds projects dealing with international environmental problems. The GEF's assistance program is managed by the World Bank. 


Date of Report: February 3, 2010
Number of Pages: 12
Order Number: RS20792
Price: $29.95

Document available electronically as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail congress@pennyhill.com or call us at 301-253-0881.