Violations of the IFC's performance standards in a palm oil project in Indonesia could have far reaching effects, drawing attention to the IFC's responsibility for the impact of whole supply chains as a review of their social and environmental standards gets under way.
Extractives
Environment
News
ICSID in crisis
The International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) is facing an explosion of cases and increasingly vocal criticism from Latin American countries. Questions remain over whether it helps channel productive investment to developing countries or serves as a tool for multinational corporations to get their way.
Environment
News
U-turn on Doing Business: time to withdraw from the knowledge bank?
The World Bank Group has recently admitted that some crucial assumptions of its Doing Business report were misguided, and faces a fundamental critique of its knowledge role.
Environment
News
IFC's role in Yemen mining
Trends in the relationship between World Bank and IFC technical assistance policies and the IFC's investment portfolio raise interesting questions over possible conflicts of interest. Disclosure at the IFC remains opaque making specific details of projects and policies hard to come by.
Environment
Commentary
Ghana's off-shore nightmare
The IFC ignored due process requirements mandated by the laws of Ghana in the case of the Jubilee oil field project and should not have considered the loan applications at the board. In so dong the IFC is encouraging the infringement of the basic rules of governance and transparency.
Environment
News
The IFC's massive lending increase
The financial crisis has shrunk credit availability to the private sector, including in developing countries. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) plans to step into the gap, but there are questions about the likely development impact and implementation of environmental and social safeguards.
Environment
News
Karachaganak: IFC still out of compliance
The International Financial Corporation is still out of compliance more than 6 months after findings by the Office of Compliance, Advisor/Ombudsman (CAO) found it to have disregarded its own regulation of toxic chemical emissions at Karachaganak Oil and Condensation Field in Western Kazakhstan.
Environment
News
Poznan and beyond
Recent UN global climate negotiations in Poland highlighted ongoing tension over whether funds will be channelled through the United Nations or the World Bank and once again shone a light on the role of the Bank as a major investor in carbon intensive projects.
Environment
Background
International financial architecture
National and international financial bodies frequently overlap both in function and membership. Below are some of the main regulatory or influential bodies within the financial system. In most, the IMF is a participant, and in some, a central player.
Environment
News
Dam wrong
A forthcoming World Bank commissioned book on large dams stresses their purported economic benefits whilst inadequately addressing serious social and environmental costs. The book is a further indicator of the Bank's preference for large dams.
Featured briefings
12 December 2024
The Bretton Woods Observer: Winter 2024
16 October 2024
The Bretton Woods Observer: Autumn 2024
16 October 2024
The lost call for international financial architecture reform in the G20
At the 80th anniversary of the World Bank and IMF, global civil society must maintain pressure on the Brazilian and South African G20 presidencies to ensure the forth Financing for Development Conference in 2025 results in urgently required international financial architecture reform.