June 25, 1946: The World Bank Opens Its Doors

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On June 25th, 1946, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development officially opened for business at 1818 H St. in Washington DC. What was it like to work for this fledgling organization? The World Bank Group Archives has produced this short video exploring the experiences of the earliest World Bank staff as they responded to the needs of the moment and laid the foundation for the future.

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00:03 June 25th,

00:04 1946.

00:06 It hadn't even been a year since the end of the Second World War.

00:10 Multilateralism and peace were fragile.

00:13 On this day,

00:14 the World Bank opens its doors for the first day of business.

00:18 There were about 30-40 people,

00:20 I guess,

00:20 when I came in 46.

00:23 We were

00:24 in the main building of 1818 H Street.

00:27 The Monetary Fund was also there.

00:29 There were still a few people from Treasury.

00:32 The organization was untested,

00:35 brand new,

00:36 and even experimental.

00:39 There were no procedures,

00:40 no policies,

00:41 no manuals,

00:43 only their expertise and their mission to guide them.

00:46 To help member countries rebuild and develop.

00:50 There were exciting days,

00:52 challenging days,

00:54 disheartening days,

00:55 difficult days in 1946.

00:58 In fact,

00:59 there was never a dull

01:02 moment.

01:03 Colleagues met for the first time in these early years,

01:06 in a country and city to which many staff were foreign.

01:10 They needed to form a community,

01:12 to form strong relationships.

01:14 It was a cohesive group.

01:16 You had people who worked with each other for years,

01:20 the engineer,

01:21 the lawyer,

01:23 the treasurer,

01:25 and the loan officer.

01:27 While settling into their new home,

01:29 they shared and celebrated their homelands,

01:32 and they had fun.

01:35 They went on mission

01:36 and brought their experiences back to DC.

01:39 They wrote policies and developed best practices.

01:42 They celebrated milestones,

01:44 and they took risks.

01:46 There were successes and failures,

01:49 but the organization grew and evolved to meet

01:51 the pressing development needs of its members.

01:55 On June 25th,

01:57 1946,

01:58 World Bank staffers took the first steps to

02:01 put the vision from Bretton Woods into action.

02:04 And we continue that work today.

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June 25th, 1946. It hadn't even been a year since the end of the Second World War. Multilateralism and peace were fragile. On this day, the World Bank opens its doors for the first day of business. There were about 30-40 people, I guess, when I came in 46. We were in the main building of 1818 H Street. The Monetary Fund was also there. There were still a few people from Treasury. The organization was untested, brand new, and even experimental. There were no procedures, no policies, no manuals, only their expertise and their mission to guide them. To help member countries rebuild and develop. There were exciting days, challenging days, disheartening days, difficult days in 1946. In fact, there was never a dull moment. Colleagues met for the first time in these early years, in a country and city to which many staff were foreign. They needed to form a community, to form strong relationships. It was a cohesive group. You had people who worked with each other for years, the engineer, the lawyer, the treasurer, and the loan officer. While settling into their new home, they shared and celebrated their homelands, and they had fun. They went on mission and brought their experiences back to DC. They wrote policies and developed best practices. They celebrated milestones, and they took risks. There were successes and failures, but the organization grew and evolved to meet the pressing development needs of its members. On June 25th, 1946, World Bank staffers took the first steps to put the vision from Bretton Woods into action. And we continue that work today.

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World Bank 75 Anniversary 062221 h264

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World Bank 75 Anniversary 062221 h264

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