J. Speeches by George Woods (1963-68)

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http://hdl.handle.net/10986/31682

George Woods served as the fourth President of the World Bank Group from 1963 to 1968.

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Development--The Need for New Directions

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1967-10-27) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke of his appreciation of the splendid support and encouragement the Bank receives from the Swedish community. Sweden’s exemplary support for the International Development Association (IDA) has an importance and a significance beyond the actual capital sums that it has made available. IDA aid helps developing peoples achieve a steady advance toward their goals of modern productivity, appropriate modern education, and self-reliant growth.
Annual Address to the Board of Governors, September 25, 1967

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1967-09-25) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke about the following: the record of the World Bank Group's activities of the past fiscal year; finance for the International Development Association (IDA); education, teaching new skills, and cultivating new attitudes toward social and economic change; exports of the less developed countries; and the effectiveness of development finance.
Finance for Developing Countries: A Time for Decision

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1967-04-13) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke of a world crisis. Food riots in Asia, government coups in Africa, student violence in this Hemisphere and elsewhere, are among the symptoms of it. It is the crisis of a new world trying to be born--the crisis of the developing countries in their struggle to achieve economic viability, national unity, and the respect of other nations. The task of development assistance has proved to be one of almost infinite complexity. The process of growth, whether of people or countries, is intricate, and when its intricacy is compounded by all the difficulties of relationships between sovereign nations, problems seem to arise in a limitless number of permutations and combinations. The knowledge and the means exist to enlarge greatly the riches of the world, to help many millions to escape hunger and to achieve, or at least approach, decent living standards for the first time. What is needed now are firm political decisions to carry out an intensive, sustained and coordinated attack on underdevelopment, together with the political will and stamina to stay the course. This will require overcoming some paradoxes that have trapped both donor and recipient countries. The World Bank Group is in a strong position to tackle these aid issues due to its articles of agreement which endow it with an aptitude for cooperation, the opportunity to be independent, and a fundamental policy of basing operations on economic factors and staying out of politics.
Multilateral and Bilateral Aid

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1967-04-07) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke about the proposal to markedly increase the funds available to the World Bank's affiliate, the International Development Association (IDA) and the financial resources going to the new regional development banks working in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The United Nations Development Program is also trying to raise the level of the government contributions it receives. Governments must soon decide about these measures of support for multilateral institutions. If the momentum of economic growth in countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America is lost, if leaders in these regions lose heart, then the prospect is for deterioration in world affairs that in the end will inevitably be of the highest concern in the industrial countries themselves. This need not be the future. And it will not be the future if the industrialized countries give development finance a realistic priority among their other concerns and responsibilities. He spoke about the difference between tied aid and untied aid. He discussed the Development Assistance Committee consultative group and aid coordination. The Bank acts as an honest broker and expert adviser.
Address to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, December 20, 1966

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1966-12-20) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke about the Bank and IDA helping to put down the foundations of economic growth in the form of transportation and electric power projects, and going deeper into the development of human resources. He discussed the progress made by World Bank Group in the field of agriculture and education. He mentioned the drafting of a scheme for multilateral investment insurance. He highlighted aid coordination to accelerate development in developing countries. He concluded that the industrialized countries should make a joint and thorough examination of what they are trying to achieve in their relationships with the developing world.
Annual Address to the Board of Governors, September 26, 1966

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1966-09-26) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, points out the activities well established by the Bank in its 20th year. He discusses: 1) International Development Association financing of education and agriculture, which includes among other things fertilizer components and plants, highways, irrigation, and credit for small agriculturists; 2) two projects aimed at increasing the willingness of the private entrepreneur and investor to venture abroad; 3) problems that confront economic developments; and 4) some specific achievements.
The Importance of an Old British Habit

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1965-11-29) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank Group, spoke about empires and some of the great works of their construction. He discussed common illusions about developing countries. He argued for making the rallying cry, “No Taxation without Representation” a cornerstone of development. He explained that it was through adding a measure of the Bank’s experience and wealth to the scarce resources available for increasing productivity in the lands in developing countries that we help economic progress. He concluded by saying that countries with a material surplus must continue to cultivate the habit of investing some of that surplus into development overseas.
Annual Address to the Board of Governors, September 27, 1965

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1965-09-27) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank and its affiliates, spoke about raising living standards; the World Bank Group funds to financing development; efforts to encourage private international investment, and two special projects, namely, amendment of the Bank and International Finance Corporation (IFC) charters and convention on the settlement of investment disputes; and two initiatives of the Bank, namely, a study, organized jointly by the International Coffee Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the Bank, and proposal put forward by the United Kingdom and Swedish delegations at the 1964 United Nations conference on trade and development.
Annual Address to the Board of Governors, September 7, 1964

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1964-09-07) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, President of the World Bank and its affiliates, spoke about Japan as a vibrant example of both reconstruction and development. He briefly reported on developments in the World Bank Group of institutions during the past year, including partnership agreements with the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization and UNESCO. He indicated some of the principal preoccupations in the period ahead, such as a scarcity of good projects to support, large debt service burdens, and the next IDA replenishment. Finally, he concluded by saying a few words about developments in the world environment in which the Bank group operates and about the possible effect of those developments upon the role of the organizations.
Address to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva, March 25, 1964

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 1964-03-25) Woods, George D.

George D. Woods, the President of the World Bank, remarked that both investment and trade are basic to economic development, which is the essential preoccupation of the Bank. He suggested that, in approaching its agenda, the aim of this Conference must be nothing less than to make a real start in evolving international trade and development policies which are more adequate than those presently prevailing for stimulating economic growth throughout the developing world. One consideration is whether to seek greater price stability through commodity agreements, or to try to mitigate the effects of price fluctuations through some new form of compensatory financing, or to try some new approach altogether. He earnestly urged that governments re-examine the amount of their pledges to IDA in the light of the pressing investment requirements of the developing countries.