Voice Mohne, chair of the council for non-governmental organisations in Malawi, declared to President Joyce Banda at a May public meeting that the adoption of the "full set of IMF reforms" by Banda's government was "too much for an average Malawian to absorb", because "there is no meaningful safety net mechanism".
PRSP
Accountability
Background
The challenges of advancing sustainability at the World Bank
This panel discussion reflected on the major sustainability challenges facing the World Bank through exploring two World Resources Institute areas - a portfolio analysis on 2012 projects, and the interaction between country systems and World Bank safeguard approaches.
Accountability
Background
Bending the arc of poverty
The session focused on the World Bank's development strategy, poverty eradication goals, global inequality, and the threat of climate change.
Accountability
Background
Financial and housing crises, the Bank's safeguards and the right to adequate housing
This session featured a presentation from UN special rapporteur on the links between financial and housing crises, safeguards and the right to adequate housing.
Accountability
Background
World Bank executive directors roundtable with CSOs
Minutes of an open roundtable with EDs that occurred during the 2013 spring meetings.
Conditionality
Background
A Global Shared Societies Agenda
Minutes meeting for A Global Shared Societies Agenda
Accountability
News
Donor IDA pledges fall flat
The World Bank gained a 12 per cent inflation adjusted increase from the 16th fundraising round for its low-income country arm, the International Development Association (IDA), despite flat donor contributions, amid renewed criticism of its overall approach.
Conditionality
Background
Civil Society Townhall Meeting with Robert Zoellick and Dominique Strauss-Kahn
Notes of the seminar of annual meetings 2010
Conditionality
News
Evaluation: World Bank's PSIA contribution to country capacity 'negligible'
A recent report by the World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) on poverty and social impact analysis (PSIA) finds implementation problems and a "negligible" impact on developing country capacity, echoing long standing civil society critiques.
Conditionality
Analysis
IMF lending programmes: old wolf in sheep's clothing?
The debate over IMF conditionality heats up as data comes in about IMF programmes; economic turmoil continues in countries such as Latvia and Ukraine, which face stern IMF demands.
Featured briefings
1 October 2024
Year one of World Bank Paris Agreement alignment in the energy sector: ‘green conditionality’ dwarfs green investments
New BWP research finds the Word Bank's approach to Paris alignment is being used to a significant extent to impose ‘green conditionalities' on borrowing countries, especially in the Global South.
3 July 2024
The Bretton Woods Observer: Summer 2024
3 July 2024
Is the World Bank rolling back commitments to citizen engagement, again?
Understanding the Bank’s chequered history with public, community and civil society participation is key for understanding what is at stake and what to do next.