First of all, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are both international financial cooperation organizations, but they are different. At the Bretton Woods Conference in July 1944, it was conceived that the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank were institutions to strengthen international economic cooperation and help build a more stable and prosperous global economy.

although the prosperity of the global economy is the core of these two international financial organizations, their missions and functions are different, and their work focuses have gradually evolved according to the new economic development and challenges.

the p>IMF promotes international monetary cooperation and provides policy advice, temporary loans and technical assistance to member countries, so that member countries can achieve and maintain financial stability and external viability, and establish and maintain a strong economy. The IMF provides loans to support policy planning aimed at solving the balance of payments problem (that is, a country cannot obtain sufficient financing on affordable terms to fulfill its international payment obligations).

Some loans of the International Monetary Fund have a short term (about one year for disbursement and three to five years for repayment), and are financed by share contributions provided by member countries. Other IMF loans have a long term (disbursement within a maximum of 3 years and repayment within 7-1 years), including preferential loans provided to low-income member countries on the basis of discount interest, which comes from the past gold sales of the IMF and donations from member countries. The main concern of the IMF in its work in low-income countries is how macroeconomic and financial policies can lay the foundation for sustainable growth and poverty reduction.

Most professional staff of the International Monetary Fund are economists. The World Bank promotes long-term economic development and poverty reduction by providing technical and financial support (including helping countries to reform specific sectors or implement specific projects, such as building schools and medical centers, water and electricity supply, preventing diseases and protecting the environment). The World Bank's financial assistance is generally long-term, and financing is provided by member countries' contributions and bond issuance. Compared with IMF staff, the skills of World Bank staff include a wider range of disciplines.

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank collaborate in many fields, especially in supporting the governments of low-income countries to implement poverty reduction strategies, providing debt relief to the poorest countries and evaluating the financial sectors of various countries. The two institutions hold joint meetings twice a year.