A General Commentary

Abstract

The two institutions discussed in the preceeding papers really stand at quite different points in their evolution. The imf stands on the threshold of a major change — as Mr Bernstein put it in his paper, a change probably more important than the foundation of the imf itself — the change to deliberate, internationalized creation of international reserves on a credit basis. That transition is in hand, but there remain important outstanding questions about how the international monetary system will in fact evolve. The World Bank, in contrast, has pretty well completed the transition from commercial project lender to economic development assistance institution; and the main concern about it is to ensure that it has adequate funds to support this role, the transition having coincided with a marked decline in the willingness of the developed countries to provide aid to the underdeveloped.