Published April 10, 2024 By Aubrey Manahan, Campaigner, and Lani Furbank, Communications Campaign Specialist As the World Bank Group (WBG) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) prepare to convene their 2024 Spring Meetings from April 15 to 20 in Washington, DC, the growing call to decolonize economic and financial institutions as a fundamental part of the … Read More.
Published December 18, 2023 By Aubrey Manahan, Campaigner for CIEL’s People, Land & Resources Program. This month, during the United Nations Climate Summit COP28 in Dubai, Parties finalized the creation of a Loss and Damage Fund aimed at addressing climate-related harms endured by vulnerable communities and countries. While this achievement follows decades of advocacy by … Read More.
Published October 5th, 2023 *Note: The World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, together with the Moroccan Government, made the decision that this year’s Annual Meetings in Marrakech will continue as planned after the recent earthquake in Morocco. CIEL will continue to monitor the evolving context and support local and regional partners who have … Read More.
The Inter-American Development Bank’s accountability mechanism officially closed its case on the Alto Maipo Hydroelectric Project after a flawed investigation and an ineffective action plan left communities with little to show for their years-long pursuit of accountability. At the end of November, the accountability mechanism of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) officially closed its case … Read More.
This week, CIEL’s experts will be engaging at the meetings to discuss major issues and challenges facing communities who have been directly affected by development projects. This week, the World Bank Group (WBG) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are holding their Annual Meetings in Washington, DC. The meetings bring together finance ministers, government delegates, … Read More.
When exiting investments, MDBs must address negative impacts of projects on communities What happens when the private sector arms of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) exit their investments without addressing negative impacts and project-related harms, thus leaving project-affected communities without proper remedial actions? We examine seven IFC and IDB Invest cases to draw specific recommendations for … Read More.
Now that the Supreme Court has ruled the World Bank can be sued, what’s next for the organization? This article originally appeared on TheNation.com. Until recently the World Bank enjoyed absolute immunity in the United States from lawsuits. But a US Supreme Court decision on February 27 opens the door for individuals and communities around … Read More.
Twenty-five years ago today, the answer to the question, “Where do we go if we are harmed by the World Bank?” changed from nowhere to the Inspection Panel. We live in an ever changing and more complicated world, where corporations have investors, managers, shareholders, and oversight from all over the world, and operations are owned … Read More.
Despite claims that development projects are designed to benefit communities around the world, they often do the opposite. Projects, especially infrastructure projects, can bring myriad problems — impacting access to or quality of water, forcing communities to resettle, infringing on grazing land, and polluting the air, water, and land, among other devastating consequences. When things go … Read More.
CIEL and the International Accountability Project designed the Early Warning System to inform people and communities about the existence of development projects that have a high likelihood of impacting their rights. This information involves much more than simply accessing crucial data regarding project design, location, scope, etc. In fact, it creates opportunities for communities to participate … Read More.
The Alto Maipo Hydroelectric Project, currently under construction just outside Santiago, Chile, threatens the water supply for over 7 million Chileans, and will have long-term devastating environmental impacts. Concerned citizens call the project “unviable” and are calling for it to be halted. From January 23-26, Marcela Mella, spokesperson of the Citizen Coordinating Committee in Defense of … Read More.
The first accountability mechanisms were created more than twenty years ago to allow people and communities negatively affected by projects funded by development finance institutions (DFIs) to seek recourse for harms related to those projects. While low-risk development projects such as education, health, and law reform can improve lives, international development financing for high-risk projects, … Read More.
Last week, CIEL joined other civil society organizations in one of the final consultations with the World Bank on the draft revisions to its safeguard policies. But perhaps “revision” is too gentle – a better word might be overhaul. The World Bank’s new proposed safeguard policies mark an attempt to move away from a mandatory … Read More.
Your energy and advocacy sparked a global momentum shift over the past year, and we are on the cusp of true, transformative change. On all fronts, you have defended your right to a healthy planet. With your support, you help CIEL… Advance Climate Justice For three years, we’ve highlighted the growing legal and financial risks … Read More.
The Early Warning System Survey aims to minimize the existing knowledge gap by ensuring that communities have the information they need to understand proposed projects and their impacts early in the development process, to identify the banks and corporations involved in financing these projects, and to learn about advocacy strategies they can incorporate into their … Read More.
Corporate accountability for human rights abuses, such as slavery, torture, forced eviction, and child labor, is an area internationally recognized as needing significant improvement. Through its recent initiatives, the UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR) is attempting to address this issue and increase access to remedies for victims of business-related human … Read More.
The Early Warning System is a joint initiative by the International Accountability Project and the Center for International Environmental Law. The Early Warning System ensures local communities, and the organizations that support them, have verified information about projects likely to cause human rights abuses and clear strategies for advocacy. Read more about this initiative here. … Read More.
This week the World Bank Spring Meetings kick off in Washington, DC, and we delivered your important messages. Yesterday, we delivered your message – amplified by more than 10,000 supporters from 90 countries – to the Executive Directors of World Bank: It’s time for World Bank President Jim Yong Kim to integrate human rights into … Read More.
The Australian Embassy is about 8 blocks of traffic, restaurants, and business offices northwest of the World Bank’s headquarters in Washington, DC– I know this because yesterday I walked the distance alongside a group of energized human rights activists. “El Salvador says no to a Kangaroo Court!” To us, the connection between the lunchtime rally … Read More.
Last month, the Board of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) met in Barbados for its 8th session. What’s the GCF? It’s a financial institution that is expected to channel billions of dollars to developing countries to help them in their efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. (Check out some of our blogs for … Read More.
Colombia’s thirty-four páramos are unique, high-altitude wetland ecosystems that serve as vital sources of freshwater for nearby inhabitants’ survival. To those who don’t directly rely on a healthy páramo ecosystem for life, however, these highlands have a different draw: precious metals buried deep beneath the surface. Therein lies the problem. In 1994, Greystar Resources Limited, … Read More.
Last week, CIEL submitted a letter to an expert group that is tasked with evaluating whether Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the Government Pension Fund Global, should divest from companies engaged in the fossil fuel industry. At the end of November, the expert group will present its divestment recommendations. If Norway decides to divest, it will … Read More.
Travelling from India on behalf of the Association for the Struggle for Fishworkers’ Rights or Machimar Adhikar Sangharsh Sangathan (MASS), Dr. Bharat Patel presented how the World Bank Group-funded Tata Mundra Power Plant has affected the community of Gujarat during the World Bank’s annual Spring Meetings. His contributions at the Bank’s meeting of Executive Directors … Read More.
When you work on international environmental law and policy issues as I do, it can sometimes be challenging to feel optimistic. However, I am pleased to share at least two reasons to be hopeful. As the global community prepares for the climate discussions at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn, Germany, CIEL … Read More.
While neither the World Bank nor its Inspection Panel are perfect, the elements that make the Panel successful in enforcing environmental standards in development projects may teach us lessons for creating effective environmental dispute resolution mechanisms in the trade arena as well. The Panel was created through an advocacy effort by members of civil society, and … Read More.
On April 9, 2014, over 18,000 people from all over the world tuned into the live stream of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing on “World Bank Lending and Human Rights.” The hearing focused on how the influential World Bank can improve its development programs while supporting effective human rights protections and maintaining environmental … Read More.
We are pleased to announce that Delphine Djiraïbé will be speaking at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Hearing on Wednesday, April 9, 2014 from 2:00pm-4:00pm along with Barney Frank (former member of Congress), Arvind Ganesan (Human Rights Watch), Nadejda Ataeva (Association for Human Rights in Central Asia), and Yoni Rivas (Movement of Unified Campesinos … Read More.
Each Spring, thousands of government finance ministers, economists, civil society representatives, and community members from around the world convene in Washington, DC, for the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring Meetings. It is often a hectic week of seminars, press conferences, civil society events, and side-line meetings. This year, the Spring Meetings and civil … Read More.
We’re reporting back from Bali, Indonesia, where the February meeting of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Board took place, and excited to share an update on the progress we made and the challenges we face ahead! The GCF was created by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in 2010 to serve as the primary … Read More.
On December 4th, the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) – the independent accountability mechanism for the private-sector lending arm of the World Bank Group – announced its decision to audit the International Financial Corporation’s (IFC) investment in Ficohsa, Honduras’ third largest bank. In April 2012, the CAO had triggered an audit of Corporación Dinant in response … Read More.
The World Bank Group has a new Strategy, which outlines how it will tackle its two goals of ending extreme poverty by 2030 and promoting shared prosperity for the bottom 40 percent of the population in developing countries. As part of that Strategy, World Bank Group President Jim Kim highlighted the central role of the … Read More.
Two weeks ago, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Inspection Panel of the World Bank. The idea for the Panel—sprung from the imagination of CIEL heroes David Hunter and Dana Clark—was then and remains now revolutionary. It marked the first time local communities possessed an avenue to raise their concerns to the highest levels … Read More.
Today, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) meets for its 5th board meeting in Paris, France. Established by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2010, the GCF promised to be the main vehicle for channeling billions of dollars pledged by developed counties to support climate mitigation and adaptation activities in developing countries. … Read More.
Alyssa Johl (CIEL), Abby Rubinson (Earthjustice) and Weni Bagama (Ngabe activist from Kiad community in Panama) co-authored the following post for Climate Action Network’s ECO publication. After this weekend’s CDM reform workshop, ECO has new hope for the CDM’s ability to address human rights. For the first time in the history of the CDM, Parties … Read More.
This week and next, CIEL’s Climate & Energy Team is in Bonn, Germany to participate in the UN Climate Change Conference. This conference is an interim meeting between the main negotiations where decisions are made (referred to as the COP) that take place every December. Bonn has become a second home to the Climate & … Read More.
World Bank President Jim Kim has challenged the world with a new campaign, #whatwillittake to end poverty? But it’s not just what you do, it’s how you do it. Economic development will not improve the lives of people unless it is accompanied by the guarantee of the full enjoyment of their human rights. Projects financed … Read More.
It’s a truism in environmentalism that the farther you are from the impact of your action, the less you know and, for the most part, the less you care. That’s just what the International Finance Corporation (IFC)—the private sector lending arm of the World Bank—has done through its investments in so-called financial intermediaries (FIs). A … Read More.
Today, CIEL, along with Amnesty International, Bretton Woods Project, and International Accountability Project, submitted a letter to the Vice President and CEO of the IFC, Lars Thunell, urging the IFC to respect and protect human rights. What is the IFC? The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector lending arm of the World Bank, lends … Read More.