The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB, or BID in Spanish and Portuguese) was established in 1959 under an agreement negotiated within the Organization of American States, and began operations in 1960. It is the oldest and largest regional development bank, predating the African and Asian Development Banks. Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C., and its current membership comprises 48 countries: 26 borrowing members in Latin America and the Caribbean, plus 22 non-borrowing members including the United States, Canada, Japan, China, Israel, the Republic of Korea, and most Western European states.
The IDB's core mandate is to reduce poverty and inequality and promote sustainable economic growth in the Western Hemisphere. It does so by lending to sovereign governments, providing technical cooperation and policy advice, and mobilizing co-financing. Voting power is weighted by capital subscription; the United States holds the single largest share, which gives it effective veto power over certain decisions requiring supermajorities. Borrowing countries collectively retain a majority of voting shares, a feature distinguishing the IDB from the World Bank.
The institution sits at the center of a wider IDB Group:
- IDB Invest (formerly the Inter-American Investment Corporation), focused on private-sector lending;
- IDB Lab (formerly the Multilateral Investment Fund), which finances innovation, entrepreneurship, and pilot projects.
The Bank is governed by a Board of Governors (typically finance ministers), a resident Board of Executive Directors, and a President elected for a five-year renewable term. By tradition the presidency is held by a Latin American national, though in 2020 Mauricio Claver-Carone of the United States was elected, breaking that convention; he was removed in 2022 following an ethics investigation and succeeded by Ilan Goldfajn of Brazil in late 2022.
For MUN and policy purposes, the IDB is frequently cited alongside CAF, the World Bank, and ECLAC as a key actor in regional financing for infrastructure, climate adaptation, and social programs.
Example
In 2022, the IDB Board of Governors elected Ilan Goldfajn, former president of Brazil's central bank, as president following the dismissal of Mauricio Claver-Carone over breaches of the institution's code of ethics.
Frequently asked questions
The IDB lends only to Latin American and Caribbean borrowers, and borrowing countries collectively hold a majority of voting shares, whereas the World Bank is global and is dominated by non-borrowing shareholders.
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