INTERNATIONAL BAl'IlC FOR
                             RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMEl~

     FOR THE PRESS                                                FOR RELFASE :'IN A,-M.
     Press Release No. 208                                        PAPERS August 29, 1950

          Robert L. Garner. ·vice President of the International Bank for Reconstruction
     and Development., will pay a two-and-one-half week visit to Finland, Sw~den., l\for:,my

     and Denmark during the latter pe.rt of September, the :Sank announced toda.y,
     Mr, Garner sails from New York on the liner Queen Mary at nooJ). tomorrow to attend

     the Annual Meeting of the Boards of Governors of the :Sank and of the International
     Monetary Fund which opens at Paris on Sept~mber 6, and will proceed from there. to

     northern Europe.
          Mr .• Garner will be accompanied by Lt. Gen, R. A• Wheeler, USA reto, engineer-

     ing adviser to the :Sank, and by Neil Paterson of the Bank's Lo~n Department.
          Th~ Vice President!s trip is being undertaken in accordance with the Bank 1 s

'9   policy of ~rranging visits, whenever suitable, by ranking Banlt officers to member

     nations of the Bank and to countries that have a~plied for membership.      The Swedish
     parliament has passed a law authorizing Sweden to become a member of the Bank.
     Finland, Norway and Denmark are members, and both Finland and Denmark have re-

     ceived loans from the Bank,,
          In 1947, the Bank lent Denmart $40,000,000 for reconstruction and develo~ment.

     In l.949, it made a loan of $12,500,0QO to the Bank of Finland for the development
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     of electric power, of limestone powd~r production, and of wood~working industries.

     Also in 1949, the :Sank loaned the Finnish Government $2,300,000 to increase timber

     production.

          While the itinerary of Mr. Garner and his party is subject to change 1 it now

     calls for them to arriv~ at Helsin.~i on September 13, Stockholm on September 19,



••   Oslo on September 21 and Copenhagen on September 28.     Mr. Garner will ·return to

     the United States on the liner Mauretania, leaving Southampton on October 3 and

     arrivi~g in New York on October 9.