Canada and the reconstruction of the international economy, 1941-1947

grantor: University of TorontoWhen Canadian policy makers in WWII reflected upon the events of the preceding thirty years, they remembered chaos, devastation, and strife: in little more than a generation, the world had twice been plunged into war and had been ravaged by a ferocious economic depression. The present war offered the chance to design a postwar order that would prevent the repetition of the mistakes of the past. So palpable was the sense of possibility that Deputy Minister of Finance W. C. Clark was moved to exclaim in December 1943: " Surely, we cannot afford to be defeatist! Surely two world wars in a quarter century must have taught this generation something! Surely they must at last have taught us that 'if we are to survive', we must seek to unleash against our common peacetime problems all the resources of the human mind and the human heart which, when applied to the problems of war, have resulted as we know in accomplishments little short of the miraculous! 1" Canadians had concluded that the world's problems could not be avoided by remaining aloof, as they had attempted to do during the interwar period, and were determined to help build a better world. This thesis examines Canada's role in the reconstruction of the international economy from 1941 to 1947. Canadian policy makers believed that a multilateral liberalized global economy was in the best interests of their nation, and the world as a whole, and did all they could to help rebuild the postwar international economy along these lines. Along the way, they made a significant contribution to the reconstruction process: Canadian experts helped found the IMF and Word Bank; Canada loaned the UK $1.25 billion to facilitate an early return to sterling convertibility; Canadian officials contributed to the creation of the GATT and ITO. The international economic institutions that resulted from seven years of effort did not always match Canadian expectations, but they did represent a good beginning. 1National Archives of Canada, RG19/3391/04747P-13, "Address by W. C. Clark given before the Institute of Post-War Reconstruction, New York University, on December 15th, 1943".Ph.D