ABSTRACT
The leading international financial institutions (IFIs) – the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank – are prohibited by their Articles of Agreement from any policies or actions that would 'interfere in the political affairs of any member'. Research on the effect of these IMF and World Bank policies and modalities on the post-war political economy has focused on the harm done to the conditions necessary for a sustainable peace. Although the World Bank insists on a participatory process to formulate the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper and to allocate aid locally, their concept of participation in practice is actually exclusionary, corporatist consultation. Evidence on the effect of IFI policies on the structure of the economy is, against expectations, remarkably consistent across countries. The focus of the IMF and the Bank on financial management and bias against spending ministries and social policy is an additional mechanism for disempowering parliament and political parties and the voting public as well.
