Governing Council
The Governing Council of IFAD is the Fund’s principal Governing Body having full decision-making powers. It consists of all of IFAD’s Member States and meets annually. It is attended by the official Member State Representatives, i.e., Governors, Alternate Governors and any other designated advisers. Observers are also invited to attend sessions. These Observers are Representatives from non-IFAD Member States that have applied for Membership to the Fund, the Holy See, the Sovereign Order of Malta and those United Nations Specialized Agencies, Intergovernmental Organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations whose Observer status has been approved by the Fund’s Executive Board.
All powers of the Fund are vested in the Governing Council which takes decisions on such matters as approval of new membership, appointment of the President of IFAD, matters pertaining to the permanent seat of the Fund, approval of the Administrative Budget and adoption of broad policies, criteria and regulations.
The Governing Council Sessions are chaired by the Chairperson of the Governing Council Bureau which is composed of, for a two-year term, a Chairperson and two Vice‑Chairpersons elected from among the Governors of the Member States of the Fund.
As per Rule 12, paragraph 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Governing Council, the “Governing Council shall at alternate annual sessions elect from among the Governors a Bureau consisting of a Chairman and two Vice-Chairmen who shall serve for two years and shall hold office until their successors are elected.”
The current Bureau, elected at the forty-fifth session of the Governing Council in 2022, is composed of the Chairperson from Peru and the Vice-Chairpersons from France and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
Current Composition
Current Composition
IFAD List A
- Member
- Austria
- Belgium
- Canada
- Cyprus
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Luxembourg
- Netherlands (Kingdom of the)
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Russian Federation
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- United States
IFAD List B
- Member
- Algeria
- Gabon
- Indonesia
- Iran (Islamic Republic of)
- Iraq
- Kuwait
- Libya
- Nigeria
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- United Arab Emirates
- Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)
IFAD List C1
- Member
- Angola
- Benin
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cabo Verde
- Cameroon
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Comoros
- Congo
- Côte d'Ivoire
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Gambia (The)
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Kenya
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Niger
- Rwanda
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Senegal
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Sudan
- Togo
- Tunisia
- Uganda
- United Republic of Tanzania
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
IFAD List C2
- Member
- Afghanistan
- Albania
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Bangladesh
- Bhutan
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Cambodia
- China
- Cook Islands
- Croatia
- Democratic People's Republic of Korea
- Fiji
- Georgia
- India
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kiribati
- Kyrgyzstan
- Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Lebanon
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Malta
- Marshall Islands
- Micronesia (Federated States of)
- Mongolia
- Montenegro
- Myanmar
- Nauru
- Nepal
- Niue
- North Macedonia
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Palau
- Papua New Guinea
- Philippines
- Republic of Korea
- Republic of Moldova
- Romania
- Samoa
- Serbia
- Solomon Islands
- Sri Lanka
- Syrian Arab Republic
- Tajikistan
- Thailand
- Timor-Leste
- Tonga
- Türkiye
- Tuvalu
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Viet Nam
- Yemen
IFAD List C3
- Member
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Bahamas (The)
- Barbados
- Belize
- Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
- Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Cuba
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Haiti
- Honduras
- Jamaica
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Suriname
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Uruguay
Vote By Correspondence
News related to this meeting
News related to this meeting
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Distinguished Representatives,
Ukraine’s application to join IFAD as a non-original member was approved by the Governing Council during its forty-sixth session. With Ukraine having deposited its instrument of accession with the UN Secretary-General on 22 October 2024, we are pleased to announce that Ukraine is now a fully-fledged member of the IFAD family and our 179th Member State!
The Office of the Secretary remains actively engaged with prospective new Member States. We are proud to see IFAD’s membership continue to grow and look forward to welcoming additional members in the future.
Highest consideration,
Office of the Secretary
To read the communication in the four official languages of the Fund, please click the following links [Arabic] [English] [French] [Spanish]
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Distinguished Representatives,
It is my pleasure to inform you that the new iteration of our global multilingual website, ifad.org, has been launched a few days ago.
Warmly,
Katherine Meighan
Chief Legal and Governance Officer, Associate Vice-President External Relations Department (a.i.)
To read the full communication, click here [Arabic] [English] [French] [Spanish]
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New appointment announcements
by Alvaro Lario
I am pleased to announce that following a comprehensive recruitment process, I have appointed Ms. Pieternel M. Boogaard as Managing Director, Office of Technical Delivery.
To read the full communication please click here.
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New appointment announcements
by Alvaro Lario
I am pleased to announce that following a comprehensive recruitment process, I have appointed Ms Federica Diamanti as Associate Vice-President, External Relations Department and Mr Roger Fischer as Chief Risk Officer, Office of Enterprise Risk Management.
To read the full communication and in the four official languages of the fund please click the following links: [Arabic] [English] [French] [Spanish]
Gallery
Governing Council Bureau Virtual Gallery »Forthcoming sessions
Forthcoming sessions
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Feb '25Forty-eighth session of the Governing Council
Starting in 3 months from today
Documents
Documents
Useful Links
Useful Links
- Rules and Procedures of the Governing Council...
- Sample letter of credence for nominating the Governor and Alternate Governor of IFAD: Arabic, English, French, Spanish (PDF).
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IFAD basic legal documents...
- Meeting documentation...