In May, over 30 NGOs worldwide issued a letter telling IFIs, bilateral development agencies, and export credit agencies to stop investing in the Ethiopian hydropower project Gilgel Gibe III (see Update 69). They are concerned about the dam’s impact on the ecology and livelihoods of people in the region. While the World Bank publically withdrew assistance, Italian NGO CRBM has said that Bank staff members are still giving support work to the project. A decision by the Italian government about bilateral financing is due soon, which may influence the final judgements of the IFIs.