The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) was born in 1961 as the successor to the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC), which itself was created after World War II to administer the United States' Marshall Plan funding of European recovery. OECD is related in its structure, antecedents, and goals to other post–World War II international agencies such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Brief History

In December 1959 the presidents of the United States and France, the West German chancellor, and the British prime minister, meeting in Paris, issued a communiqué calling for the industrialized countries to cooperate to help the less-developed world and to "pursu[e] trade policies directed to the sound use of economic resources and the maintenance of harmonious international relations, thus contributing to growth and stability in the world economy...