Notes from the 2017 World Bank and IMF Annual Meetings session on the IMF's approach to fiscal space, women and work, 11 October
UN
Rights
Analysis
The IMF, Gender Equality and Labour
BWP briefing explores IMF's labour market policies in the context of women in the informal economy and suggests they will not contribute to decreasing inequalities.
Rights
Analysis
UN Independent Expert reports on World Bank and IMF human rights performance
UN Independent Expert publishes two reports on the World Bank and IMF human rights performance, finding the institutions must be more than a "fig leaf" for the status quo and step up their human rights commitments.
Conditionality
Analysis
The IMF and Gender Equality: A Compendium of Feminist Macroeconomic Critiques
The Bretton Woods Project published an edited volume on the gendered impacts of some of the most commonly-prescribed macroeconomic policies of the IMF, covering tax, expenditure and labour policies.
Rights
News
IEO finds IMF follows "nebulous standard" on social protection engagement
IMF’s Independent Evaluation Office published evaluation on IMF and social protection and found that the IMF’s targeting approach does not ‘mesh well’ with UN’s human-rights-based approach.
Finance
Analysis
Development to the rescue of finance – the Bank’s 'cascade' approach
World Bank unveils cascade concept that privileges private over public finance. De-risking in order to attract private sector investments threatens to shift risks to public sector and result in third wave of privatisation.
Rights
Background
Are governments and the Bretton Woods Institutions fighting inequality?
Notes of a 2017 IMF and World Bank spring meetings session on the BWIs and inequality, 21 April
Conditionality
News
IMF lending freeze “pushing Tunisia to the brink”
IMF freezes second payment of $2.8 billion loan to Tunisia, demanding accelerated reform programme despite concerns this will push Tunisia “to the brink”.
IFI governance
Analysis
The Bank and the IMF in 2016: year in review
The Bretton Woods Project's review of the most important developments at the World Bank and IMF in 2016.
Finance
Analysis
Development finance institutions and responsible corporate tax behaviour
Report finds Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) are not doing enough to eliminate the risk of public money being complicit in tax avoidance schemes.
Environment
Background
Safeguarding climate finance: GCF, MDBs, rights, and social/environmental risk
Notes from a side event at the IMF/World Bank 2016 annual meetings discussing lessons learned from the World Bank Group’s experiences with high risk projects, safeguards, gender equality, Indigenous Peoples, and environmental and social management systems, and how these should be applied to the Green Climate Fund.
Gender
News
Gender equality at the IFIs: progress or PR?
The World Bank and the IMF have increased their rhetoric on gender equality, but concerns remain about Fund and Bank impacts on gender equality in practice.
Featured briefings
6 April 2023
World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings 2023
5 April 2023
The global financial architecture and the international debt crisis: An urgent call for reform
Influence of unreformed international financial institutions and creditor interests in debt solutions in low- and middle-income countries plagued by delay and ineffective when undertaken.
4 April 2023