The World Bank and The International Monetary Fund (IMF)

The World Bank and The International Monetary Fund (IMF) were established by Britain and the United States of America in July 1944. The aim of the two institutions was to rebuild the world economy for the next 50 years. The Internatinal Monetary Fund was established "to smooth world commerce by reducing foreign exchange restrictions."
It helped by reserving funds and allowing countries with temporary financial difficulty to continue trading without interruption. The World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development) was aimed to provide loans to developing countries for infrastructure projects such as roads and utilities.

The title says it all.  This book suggested that both The World Bank and The International Monetary Fund was not functioning efficiently or reaching their original goals. This book give evidences of The World Bank "wasted" their resources; namely, they spent the money but not helping the countries. Sometime the Bank even weaken the countries' economy instead. They are "ill-suited", as the Finance Ministry official of Japan expressed his disappiontment towards the institutions. This book argues that both The World Bank and The International Monetary Fund are being used as a political weapon. That is one of the reasons why the institutions are not functioning efficiently. It has been more than 50 years since the institutions were established. The book suggested that the institutions should change their money lending policies. Rather then forcing countries to follow their "gospel" of generating income, they should trust the countires themselves and let them do it their way, according to their local situations. That is, to increase local self-reliance, increase investment in physical and social infrastructure, as well as economic opportunities
A reader from Vancouver Canada, 1997

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I found this to be a cogent analysis of the two organizations in question, particularly in light of the recent turmoil they've caused in East Asia and Russia.
Through this book, we see that the IMF and the World Bank were making mischief abroad long before their more recent, more well publicized disasters. The word disaster is particularly appropriate in Indonesia; I hesitate to guess how many decades the country has been set back as a result of the IMF/World Bank meddling.
I'd like to see an updated version of the book, to take into account the more recent boondoggles. The sad thing is that they not only have wasted billions of dollars, but often have left the recipients worse off than they were to begin with. The administrators of the organizations, of course, are living high on the hog all the while (to any IMF/World Bank top dogs who've recently taken a vow of poverty, my apologies), even as they're effectively impoverishing millions.  A reader.

Lords of Poverty: The Power, Prestige and Corruption of the International Aid Business by Graham Hancock Paperback (1992)

A comprehensive and controversial study of the 60-billion-dollar-a-year world foreign-aid business, Lords of Poverty was a bestseller in hardcover and earned the 1990 H.L. Mencken Award honorable mention for an outstanding book of journalism. Hancock investigates why huge aid projects often fail and demands a response from those in the industry.

Famine Crimes: Politics & the Disaster Relief Industry in Africa (African Issues) by Alexander De Waal Paperback (1998)

This is a managable text,even for the novice in African current afairs and is written by the co-director of the Africa Rights group,based in London.  De Waal contends that the causes of famine are invariably political and avoidable.He is critical of the activities to date of many aid agencies and observes that they have in many cases paradoxically perpetuated the very crises they have been seeking to end. This work has raised many questions for me and is a starting point for further reading on the subject of how aid to developing countries can be best delivered. A Reviewer.

Famine, Conflict and Response: A Basic Guide by Frederick Cuny, Richard Hill Paperback (1999)

Hardcover (1999)

Healing Communities in Conflict: International Assistance in Complex Emergencies by Kimberly Maynard Hardcover (1999) Paperback (1999)

Paperback (1999)

Harold H. Saunders Director of International Affairs at the Kettering Foundation and former Assistant Secretary of State  The authority of Maynard's extensive experience in dealing with crisis like these coupled with her pathbreaking insights into how our changing world works makes this book uniquely valuable for a scholar, practitioner and policymaker alike.
This book shows how the international community can be more effective in the war-torn, disaster-scarred regions of the world,and ensure that people in conflict can rebuild their communities after the fighting stops.

This is the first comprehensive study covering the entire history of international non-governmental organizations.   It develops a systematic and coherent theory of INGOs as reflections of world culture and as arenas in which world culture develops and expands.   The book thereby breaks new ground in theorizing about global development.   The chapters present detailed studies of a variety of INGO sectors, ranging from such familiar domains as environmentalism and the women's movement.
Contents include: International Nongovernmental Organizations in the World Policy; INGOs and the Organization of World Culture; National Participation in World-Policy Organization; The Rationalization and Organization of Nature in World Culture; The Emergence and Transformation of the International Women's Movement; Rules of War and Wars of Rules: The International Red Cross and the Restraint of State Violence; Technical, Scientific, and Development Sectors; Population Control for National Development: From World Discourse to National Policies Development INGOs; World Authority Structures and Legitimations.

Pauly is to congratulated on this book. Returning to a period of international monetary history that is often neglected or singularly explored only for its failings, the author quite precisely re-examines the Interwar monetary system and the role of the League of Nations in the "management" and "surveillance" of global financial relations. In identifying the roots of the Bretton Woods System and the IMF's eventual surveillance role in the League's operations, Pauly gives continuity and a measure of depth to our own understandings of today's financial systems.
In addition, he explores the difficult question of the legitimacy of the state in an era when financial modernization and integration has humbled policymakers and ruined economies. Who Elected the Bankers? is an important book as we debate the future of our contemporary monetary system by calling our attention to the lessons of the League.
Reviewer: A reader from Washington, DC October 16, 1999

Hardcover (1997)

The Globalisation of Poverty: Impacts of IMF and World Bank Reforms by Michel Chossudovsky Hardcover (1997) Paperback (1997)

Paperback (1997)

These are some wonderful thougts that have stimulated my mind into asking the question "Can Africans Think?".This book exposes the disguise of mainstream economics which leaves human society's precious values at the hands of economic lust.  All Africans need to know about this big con job being operated under the disguise of macro economics.
Reviewer: Mutambaruka from johannesburg South Africa October 27, 1999

Hardcover (1998)

The Revolution in Development Economics by James Dorn, Steve Hanke, Alan Walters Hardcover $22.95 (1998) Paperback (1998)

Paperback (1998)

The collapse of communism and the statist model of development planning has led to a revolution in development economics.

The Global Trap: Globalization and the Assault on Prosperity and Democarcy by Hans-Peter Martin, Harald Schumann, Patrick Camiller Paperback (1997)

A thought-provoking insight into the negative repercussions of the phenomenon of globalization, this book debunks quite a few taken-for-granted assumptions about the relationship between the globlization of financial markets and socio-economic welfare. The argument that the various forms that globalization is taking have destabilizing effects on social relationships runs throughout the book, somehow urging the reader thereby to pause at sseveral points in the reading process to re-examine his/her coneptions about globalization and economic growth. The convivial tone in which the the authors make their forceful pronouncements on the subject at hand is highly appreciated; one indeed feels that the authors sort of seek to establish some kind of complicity against the forces of control and domination (no wonder the book was reprinted nine times in Germany and was translated into many languages). It also does so by demystifying the ostensibly neutral developmental aims of corporate business. The socioeconomic havocs that have been wreaked in the name of globalization find ample room in this cogently argued book. A good reference book this is. M. Karimi, Ph.D