World Bank

The Bretton Woods Conference, officially known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, was a gathering of delegates from 44 nations that met from July 1 to 22, 1944 in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire (USA), to agree upon a series of new rules for international financial and monetary order after the conclusion of World War II.

The World Bank Group consists of five development institutions. 

1. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) provides loans, credits, and grants. 
2. International Development Association (IDA) provides low- or no-interest loans to low-income countries. 
3. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) provides investment, advice, and asset management to companies and governments.
4.  The Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA) insures lenders and investors against political risks such as war. 
5. The International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) settles investment disputes between investors and countries. 

• India was one of the forty-four original signatories to the agreements reached at Bretton Woods that established the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). 
• It was also one of the founding members of the IFC in 1956 and the IDA in 1960. 
• India later became a member of the MIGA in January 1994. 
• India is not a member of ICSID.

Reports

• Ease of Doing Business 
• Human Capital Index.
• World Development Report.

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The World Bank launched a “Toolkit on Enabling Gender Responsive Urban Mobility and Public Spaces in India” with the aim of suggesting ways to make public transport in Indian cities more inclusive of women’s traveling requirements.