Washington, 10 February 1998 (RFE/RL) -- The governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last week formally approved the 45 percent increase in member nations quotas agreed to at the fund's annual meetings in Hong Kong last September.
The increase, which will raise the fund's capital base to around $288 billion, will take effect only after 85 percent of the fund's voting power ratifies the raise and pays in the additional money.
In addition to the general increase in quotas, or membership fees, the IMF readjusted some of them to more accurately reflect the size of each member nation's economy. The quota determines how much a nation must pay in and the size of its vote in fund decisions.
The fund's largest member, the United States, will hold a voting share of 17.5 percent under the new quota, slightly lower than its previous 18.5 percent. The U.S. quota goes up to $50,522 million.
A coalition of political forces on the left and right has launched a campaign against U.S. participation in the quota increase. While most experts predict it will eventually be approved, failure of the U.S. to ratify the quota rise would block its implementation.
Following is a list of selected IMF member nations, the size of their new quota and the percentage vote each will have under the new arrangement.
They are listed from largest to smallest in their current quota rankings:
Russia $8,085 million ..........2.8 percent China $6,374......................2.2 Iran $2,035......................0.7 Ukraine $1,865......................0.647 Poland $1,861......................0.646 Hungary $1,412......................0.49 Romania $1,400......................0.486 Turkey $1,311......................0.455 Czech R. $1,114......................0.386 Bulgaria $870.........................0.302 Belarus $525........................0.182 Croatia $496........................0.172 Slovak R. $486........................0.169 Kazakhstan $497........................0.172 Uzbekistan $375........................0.13 Slovenia $315........................0.109 Bosnia $230........................0.08 Afghan. $220........................0.076 Azerbaijan $219........................0.076 Georgia $204........................0.071 Lithuania $196........................0.068 Moldova $167........................0.058 Armenia $125........................0.043 Kyrgyz R. $121........................0.042 Tajikistan $118........................0.041 Macedonia $94..........................0.032 Turkmenistan $102........................0.035 Estonia $88.........................0.031 Albania $66.........................0.023