Glossary



  • IEA, International Energy Agency

    • The International Energy Agency (IEA) is an international organization set up by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, in 1974.  Its aim is to facilitate the coordination of member countries' energy policies in order to ensure the stability of energy supplies, in particular of oil, and to support economic development.  It has recently broadened its mandate to include also sustainable development, engaging in the promotion of alternative energies, in the rationalization of energy policies and in the coordination of multinational research into new sources of energy.  Only OECD member countries can become members of the agency. The agency's headquarters are in Paris.

  • IFAD, International Fund for Agricultural Development

    • The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) works with poor rural people to enable them to grow and sell more food, increase their incomes, and determine the direction of their own lives. Since 1978, IFAD has invested over US$11 billion in grants and low-interest loans to developing countries, empowering some 340 million people to break out of poverty. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized UN agency based in Rome. It is a unique partnership of 165 members from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), other developing countries and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

  • IFI, International Financial Institutions

    • The term refers to the financial institutions set up by groups of countries and subject to international law. They comprise the development banks –  the World Bank and the regional banks – the regional authorities – the IMF and the BIS – and the WTO.

  • ILO, International Labour Office

    • United Nations organisation founded in 1919 to promote free, equal, safe working conditions respecting human dignity. It drafts policies and programmes to back workers’ rights, improve working and living conditions, increase scope for employment and enhance dialogue on labour issues. It also sets international labour standards, helps the member states to implement its recommendations and monitors international compliance with them.
      It has its headquarters in Geneva and has 179 member states. The ILO is the only United Nations agency with a tripartite structure, meaning that the organisation’s policies and programmes are adopted jointly by three different bodies representing the governments, the business world and the world of work.

  • IMF, International Monetary Fund

    • International institution that promotes worldwide financial cooperation, exchange rate stability, economic growth and higher employment. It also provides crisis-hit countries with technical assistance and temporary economic aid. It currently comprises 185 countries.