In a world that is ever more interconnected the British Government has an impact beyond Britain’s borders. ActionAid works to push the British Government to play a positive role on the international stage through its membership of international institutions, at summits and meetings with their counterparts.

G8 summit
Every year the leaders of the world’s eight richest industrialised democracies (US, Canada, Japan, France, Germany, Britain, Italy and Russia) meet to discuss the key issues of the day. The chair changes each year: in 2005 Britain hosted the event in Gleneagles, in 2006 Russia organised the meeting in St Petersburg and in 2007 Germany held the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm.

World Bank and International Monetary Fund
The World Bank & International Monetary Fund (IMF) are the largest and most influential of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs). Along with smaller regional banks, they have a huge influence on the economies of developing countries.

Often referred to as the Bretton Woods Institutions, the decisions of the World Bank & IMF make affect the lives of millions. However, the damaging strings that the World Bank & IMF attach to aid, loans and debt relief often make it more difficult for poor countries to effectively tackle poverty. Read more on the World Bank & IMF.

World Trade Organization
The WTO is an international institution with 150 member countries which decides the rules that govern world trade. It works on the detail of trade agreements all year round, but every two years trade ministers from member countries meet for a ministerial meeting to set the WTO's priorities for the coming years. The last meeting took place in Hong Kong in December 2005 – but very little progress was made.

Virtually any economic policy that a government can make is dependent upon what is agreed at the WTO. This means that governments do not have a full range of options open to them – their space to set their own economic policies is narrowed by the WTO. WTO rules, agreed by member countries, limit the role that governments can play in their economies. Read more on trade and the role of the WTO here.

United Nations
The UN was founded in 1945 in the wake of the second world war. Since then it has developed a range of instruments and institutions to respond to conflict, emergencies, and development amongst other issues.

European Union
The EU is an international institution with 27 member states. The main decision-making bodies are the European Commission (EC), the European Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. The European Court of Justice is also important.

The EC is made up of 27 commissioners, each of whom are appointed by a member state. In 2005 the British Government appointed Peter Mandelson and he was subsequently given responsibility for the EU’s trade policies. The EC has one of the world’s largest development aid programmes and negotiates trade policy on behalf of its member states at the World Trade Organization.

The European Council is made up of ministers of the member states. For most areas of policy it makes the final decisions.

The European Parliament is made up of 758 MEPs, each of whom represents a constituency in a member state. Europe-wide elections are held every 5 years. MEPs play a role in setting the EU’s budget and pass Europe-wide legislation.

photo : ©Gideon Mendel/Corbis/ActionAid