In the News

On 1 July, the board of directors of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank’s private sector lending arm, and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the World Bank’s political risk insurance arm, announced that it had finalised the development of a new policy for the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the independent accountability mechanism of IFC and MIGA.

Community members in Kawaala Zone II in Kampala, Uganda have filed a complaint to the World Bank’s Inspection Panel following attempts to evict them from their homes and farmland without adequate compensation.The eviction is intended to make way for the expansion of the Lubigi drainage channel, a project funded by the World Bank.

The International Finance Corporation’s new accountability policy came into effect Thursday, the culmination of a yearslong process that included a landmark case the institution lost before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Indigenous rights are at a critical crossroads after communities in Nepal have succeeded in holding the European Union’s investment bank accountable for its role in forcibly constructing a hydropower project on Indigenous land.

In a win for local Indigenous groups, the European Investment Bank (EIB) vowed to address gaps in the implementation of a hydropower project in central Nepal.

Stephanie Amoako is a senior policy associate with the Accountability Counsel, which advocates for people harmed by the kinds of projects supported by OPIC and the DFC. “The DFC should welcome any opportunity to increase transparency and accountability to the public,” Amoako said in a phone call, “particularly those most affected by the projects.”

J.P. Morgan recently released its first annual report on its year-old development finance institution. Accountability Counsel’s policy director, Margaux Day, discusses the need for J.P. Morgan’s development finance institution to develop an accountability mechanism to ensure it can effectively manage unintended risks and impacts.

In its report released last month, the European Investment Bank’s Complaints Mechanism found a series of problems, including environmental assessment shortcomings, no stakeholder engagement plan, poor outreach to local Indigenous people, and no evidence of that community’s endorsement for the project.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has pledged to address gaps in the implementation of a power project in Nepal, handing a rare victory to Indigenous groups and local communities who had raised concerns about being uprooted from their land.

The industry needs to do a better job being accountable to communities directly impacted by projects, as individuals living near and working at investment sites bear the most risk if an investment has unintended environmental and social consequences, said Margaux Day, Policy Director at Accountability Counsel.

When local communities complain about projects, their adversaries are powerful, and complaint structures can be incredibly opaque and burdensome.

Based on over a decade of working with communities around the world, Accountability Counsel has seen various pitfalls of not adhering to community-led accountability and developed recommendations for how to improve.  

Margaux Day of Accountability Counsel emphasized that Janine Ferretti, the new vice president of the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman, will have to put her experience working on environmental and social safeguard issues at the Inter-American Development Bank to use as she endeavours to fulfil the terms of reference of the post during these challenging times.

The International Finance Corporation’s Operating Principles for Impact Management take a step to protect against impact-washing by requiring disclosures and verification. Genuine accountability requires more.

Watchdog groups such as Accountability Counsel amplify community voices around the world to protect human rights and environment. While these organizations serve as advocates for those harmed by internationally financed projects, screening for potential adverse effects at the inception stage can identify issues that may be non-obvious to the project sponsors or financiers.

Earlier this year, the Asian Development Bank withdrew its financial support for the Northern Province Sustainable Fisheries Development Project in Sri Lanka, effectively halting a years-long community-led effort to make funders accountable to community priorities. Anirudha Nagar

In September, senior executives at mining giant Rio Tinto resigned over the destruction of ancient Aboriginal caves in Juukan Gorge in Western Australia after communities and investors alike voiced concerns that the company was failing to hold them accountable for their actions. This incident has focused attention on the need for accountability…

The IFC’s Chief Executive Officer, Philippe Le Houérou, announced that he will be stepping down from his position, effective 1 October.

Philanthropists and impact investors who “intend to do good” with their money often have “a blind spot” because they fail to consider “the potential negative consequences in a real way,” said Natalie Bridgeman Fields, founder and executive director of Accountability Counsel.

Indigenous people in south-eastern Myanmar want to stop poachers, loggers and agribusinesses from laying waste to the globally significant wilderness of Tanintharyi, home to threatened species like tigers and Asian elephants.