In July a response to the letter submitted by over 60 civil society organisations (see Update 46) regarding concerns over the Bank’s implementation of its own response to the Extractive Industries Review (EIR) was received from Rashad Kaldany, director of the IFC’s Oil, mining, gas and chemicals department. Selected highlights include:

there will not be any absolute "no-go zones"

• IFC will develop non-binding guidance notes on broad community support;
• there will not be any “no-go zones”;
• revenue transparency commitments currently only apply to “significant projects”, defined as accounting for 10 per cent or more of government revenues. Kaldany stated that he would propose that the EIR transparency commitments be included in the revised IFC safeguard policies;
• IFC will modify its poverty impact assessment template, which assesses the effects of extractive industry projects on poverty, to reflect both positive and negative project impacts. IFC has made no commitment regarding independent or local community monitoring; and
• Consideration of governance risks should now be stated in the IFC’s summary of project information document.

In December 2005 CEE Bankwatch and Bank Information Centre will host a conference to highlight World Bank performance on the implementation of EIR recommendations. The primary purpose of the conference is to present the EIR project case studies and an overall EIR status report. For further information contact Heike Mainhardt-Gibbs at: hmainhardt@bicusa.org or Petr Hlobil at: petr.hlobil@ecn.cz