New book addresses how to adjust the concept of public goods to today’s economic and political realities-includes discussion of governance of the IMF.
Water
Rights
News
Water meetings everywhere and not a drop to drink
Debates over “high-risk” infrastructure, follow-up to the World Commission on Dams and private management have dominated discussion of the Bank’s new water strategy and global meetings on financing water infrastructure in Washington and Kyoto.
Knowledge
News
Bank “soul searching” on privatisation
Critics of privatisation are invited to speak at a meeting organised by the Latin American and Caribbean department.
Social services
News
Bengal opposition to Bank-backed water tax
Residents of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) area in West Bengal will be the first to pay a new tax on water.
Environment
News
Complaints panel finds major problems in Coal India mines
An official report has found that villagers in Eastern India, have suffered harm to their livelihoods as a result of a Bank-backed coal mining project.
Environment
News
Complaints panel report finds social problems in Coal India mines
A new official report has found that villagers in Jharkhand state, Eastern India, have suffered harm to their livelihoods as a result of a Bank-backed coal mining project.
Social services
News
Ghana water privatisation disputed by independent analysts
An international fact-finding mission on plans to reform the water sector in Ghana made its conclusions public before the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and the IMF.
Social services
News
Bolivia water latest
Bolivia provides further lessons from Bank-backed water privatisation.
Accountability
News
Lesotho corruption verdict
Following a seven month trial, Canadian company Acres International was convicted on two counts of bribing an official to secure contracts for the Lesotho Highland Water Project, which received financing from the World Bank.
Infrastructure
News
Commissioners urge better water strategy
The twelve prominent individuals who served as commissioners on the World Commission on Dams have written to the World Bank President demanding that he do more to implement their recommendations.
Featured briefings
9 June 2025
New data reveal World Bank DPF ‘climate finance’ carries strong private sector bias, undermining a just transition
New BWP briefing finds the World Bank counted 70 per cent of energy-sector reforms in Development Policy Financing as having 'climate co-benefits' between 2018-2023 - but most of these promoted a private-led energy transition.
15 April 2025
The Bretton Woods Observer: Spring 2025
2 April 2025