an emerging source of global development finance that is vertically earmarked towards a single issue, such as fighting HIV-AIDS, malaria or tuberculosis, rather than horizontally towards a programme area, such as building better health care systems. Since the late 1990s and the arrival of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, the [..]

the levy represents a small solidarity tax on airline tickets. The proceeds from the levy are intended to support international development efforts, are pooled and coordinated through UNITAID, and are donated to existing national and international development institutions (e.g. Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the Clinton Fou [..]

every year the International Monetary Fund assesses every member country’s economy to ensure the member is providing a sound macroeconomic framework and corresponding policies to promote financial stability, economic growth and free exchange rates. These consultations aim at forestalling possible future financial crises. The fund also operates the [..]

also East Asian Monetary Fund. See “Chiang Mai Initiative”

ASEAN includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ASEAN+3 adds China, Japan and South Korea.

a common name for the IMF-coordinated emergency rescue loans to economies in crisis. The most immediate beneficiaries of bailouts are typically foreign investors, while citizens are left holding the IMF debt bill.

the total of all international transactions undertaken by a country during a given time. Sales to foreigners are recorded as credits while purchases of goods, services or assets are recorded as debits. The BOP statement includes summaries of both the current account and the capital account.

the “Banco del Sur” was established on December 9, 2007 in Buenos Aires when Presidents from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela signed the Founding Act. When it is launched in 2008, the Bank is expected to have an initial capital base of between $5 and $7 billion, and it will act as a development bank dispensing lo [..]

Bank for International Settlements (BIS)* - BIS serves as a bank for central banks, and exists to foster international monetary and financial cooperation. It conducts research in areas of interest to central banks, supports the work of the Basel Committee, and assists central banks and other monetary institutions in the management of their foreign [..]

* - As part of its monetary and financial stability services, the BIS hosts the Basel Committee, which provides a forum for regular cooperation on banking supervisory matters. Its key concern is to ensure the adequate capitalisation of banks. As banks’ operations were increasingly internationalised, rich countries launched the committee in 1974 to [..]