“This vote demonstrates the widespread support of our membership for these landmark reforms,” IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said. “I urge all our members to proceed rapidly with the steps required to implement this package within the agreed timeframe.”

The Resolution, which had been recommended by the IMF's Executive Board to the IMF Board of Governors on November 5 , is a package of reforms on quotas and governance in the IMF. These reforms will lead to a major overhaul of the Fund’s voice and governance, strengthening the Fund’s legitimacy and effectiveness.

With the adoption of the Resolution, the 14th General Review of Quotas has been completed with an unprecedented doubling of quotas to approximately SDR 476.8 billion (about US$733.9 billion) and a major realignment of quota shares among members. Once in effect, it will result in a shift of more than 6 percent of quota shares to dynamic emerging market and developing countries and more than 6 percent from over-represented to under-represented countries, while protecting the quota shares and voting power of the poorest members. The Board of Governors also supported an amendment to the Articles of Agreement that would facilitate a move to a more representative, all-elected Executive Board.

The reforms build on those initiated in 2008 and, combined with the earlier steps, the voting shares of emerging market and developing countries as a group will rise by over 5 percentage points. The 10 Fund members with the largest voting share will consist of the United States, Japan, plus the so-called “BRICs” (Brazil, China, India, the Russian Federation), and the four largest European countries (France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom--click here for table). The major realignment in the ranking of quota shares under this reform will result in a Fund that better reflects global realities.

The Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the IMF and consists of one governor appointed by each member country. The governor is usually the minister of finance or the governor of the central bank. Most powers of the IMF are vested in the Board of Governors. The Board of Governors has delegated to the Executive Board all except certain reserved powers. The Board of Governors normally meets once a year.

The Executive Board functions in continuous session and is responsible for conducting the business of the IMF. It is composed of 24 Directors, who are appointed (5) or elected by member countries or by groups of countries (19), and the Managing Director, who serves as its Chairman. The Board usually meets several times each week. It carries out its work largely on the basis of papers prepared by IMF management and staff.

Each member country of the IMF is assigned a quota, based broadly on its relative position in the world economy. Quota subscriptions are the primary sources of the IMF's financial resources. A member’s quota determines its maximum financial commitment to the IMF and its voting power, and has a bearing on its access to IMF financing.