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The IFC’s inability to take responsibility for a crisis of its own making comes at a time when the World Bank is asking shareholder governments to trust it more.

With COP28 underway this week, our attention turns to financial institutions and their role in the climate crisis, prompting questions about the effectiveness of climate finance and emphasizing the pressing need for strengthened accountability and meaningful remedy.

Accountability Counsel joins hundreds of organizations calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

As the IDB Group embarks upon adopting a new Institutional Strategy, the IDB should learn lessons from its independent accountability mechanism to ensure that its new seven-year strategy prioritizes improving community impact in addition to focusing on growth.

Responding to disturbing and devastating reports of efforts to cover up child sexual abuse tied to a World Bank Group investment in Kenya, 32 civil society organizations are demanding transparency and justice.

Private sector involvement in multilateral development bank (MDB) projects, both in terms of investment and implementation, undeniably affects the implementation of a project, influencing banks’ adherence to their own policies.

Independence is crucial to the effectiveness of accountability mechanisms at international financial institutions, development agencies, and other institutions. In light of recent threats, 26 civil society organizations sent a letter to the Independent Accountability Mechanisms network (IAMnet) with a call to protect the independence of IAMnet’s members.

As the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) meets today for its first in-person annual meeting in four years, civil society groups are questioning the bank’s track record on accountability.

Last week, hundreds of public development banks met in Cartagena, Colombia for the 4th annual Finance in Common summit to discuss how PDBs can advance the Sustainable Development Goals and address climate change and other global crises. This FIC summit proposed to develop “concrete actions to make finance more sustainable, equitable, and inclusive,” yet the conversations largely left out the very people most affected by its members’ financing – local communities.

The lack of a shared “complaint vocabulary” across the various IAMs hampers community comprehension, broader public engagement, and system-wide analysis. As the number of complaints grows, so does the need for a standardized method to assess, categorize, and report complaints.

Civil society organizations play a crucial role in supporting communities throughout, and improving the accessibility of IAM complaint processes. Insights from preliminary research on this topic show the impact representation can have on the success of a complaint, and identify potential policy changes to make IAMs more accessible for communities.

The World Bank Group is evolving its mission to confront a “crisis of development” precipitated by climate change, biodiversity loss, pandemic risks, rising fragility and conflict, and global economic distress. By its very definition, the Evolution Roadmap it has offered for public consultation is evidence enough that this is intended to be a conscious evolution. But as it vies to lead on climate finance, its crisis of accountability jeopardizes a just and inclusive transition that leaves no one behind, especially those it aims to serve. Accountability Counsel, supported by 22 civil society organizations from across the globe, have presented the bank with an Evolution to Accountability Roadmap, outlining necessary reforms to govern its evolution and ensure that communities impacted by WBG financing remain at the center of its broadened mission.

Members of the CSO Working Group on the African Development Bank (AfDB) recently published Understanding the AfDB: A Guide for CSOs and Communities. We hope that this toolkit will help civil society organizations and communities effectively engage in the AfDB’s activities and hold the bank accountable to its development mission and for the impacts of its projects.

The Console now includes all complaint data though 2022. Has anything substantively changed since January 2020?

As of May 2023, people impacted by the mining industry have a new forum to raise environmental and social concerns. The new mechanism, called the Mediation and Consultation Mechanism for the Mining Industry and Mineral Value Chain, is also the first grievance mechanism applicable to many Chinese corporations engaged in…

In recent days, Ugandan communities signed an agreement in defense of their community, their land, and their livelihoods. The Kawaala community has faced agonizing threats to their wellbeing and livelihoods since the Government sought to evict them at the height of the pandemic. With our support, those communities fought for safety and just compensation, culminating in the agreement signed with the Kampala Capital City Authority.

At last, the European Parliament has approved its negotiating position on the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, completing an important step toward ensuring that corporate actors across all sectors of the economy, from finance to extraction, production, and distribution, operate with respect for human rights and planetary ecology. Read more about several notable improvements that stand to make the final law successful.

As the EBRD reviews its Environmental and Social Policy, the case of the controversial Amulsar gold mine project in Armenia presents valuable lessons that can shape future policies.

The Asian Development Bank is finally reviewing its Accountability Mechanism policy. The review is long due and must follow a process that is independent, transparent, and consults project affected communities and civil society organizations.

The African Development Bank has released the final version of its updated Integrated Safeguards System (ISS). If well implemented, the new safeguards could go a long way in preventing harm to communities. However, the policy still does not guarantee remedy for harms that do occur.