Decisions of Administrative Council

Abstract

Art. 7 contains a number of procedural rules governing the activities of the Administrative Council. They concern the Administrative Council's meetings, voting, the quorum for meetings, and a simplified procedure for making decisions without a meeting. More detailed rules on these issues are contained in the Administrative and Financial Regulations 1–7. Meetings The earlier drafts to the Convention specifically provided that the Administrative Council's annual meeting would be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the World Bank's Board of Governors (History, Vol. I, p. 46). The idea was administrative expediency and economy since the members of the two bodies would be largely identical (see Art. 4, paras. 2–4) (History, Vol. II, pp. 77, 249/50, 251, 317, 477, 713). Eventually, this provision was taken out of the Convention's text as superfluous (at p. 713). Administrative and Financial Regulation 1(1) now contains a rule to this effect. All drafts foresaw additional meetings upon a decision of the Administrative 3 Council or if called by the Chairman (History, Vol. I, pp. 46, 48). Suggestions that a certain number of the Council's members should be able to request a meeting (History, Vol. II, pp. 316, 482) led to the provision under which the Secretary-General may convene a meeting at the request of at least five members.