Nixon’s decision to delink the dollar from gold still hounds the IMF, South Africa and Africa

After 1976 the IMF became an organisation that engaged with member states on a differentiated basis. Unfortunately, given the weighted voting arrangements in the IMF, this differentiation also meant that the states with the dominant voice in the organisation did not depend on its services. Consequently, they could place demands on it without worrying about being accountable to those who would be most affected by their decisions.