The World Bank and IFC continue push for controversial hydropower, with projects in Guatemala, Democratic Republic of Congo, East Africa, Niger, Pakistan and Macedonia. The Bank warned on long term viability of hydropower, as Uruguay’s state hydro company agreed insurance with the Bank.
New Bank report highlighting benefits of privatisation heavily criticised by NGOs, pointing to the impact on communities in the Philipines, left without water.
In the wake of the April publication of the World Bank funded feasibility study of the Red Sea – Dead Sea canal, a coalition of 19 Palestinian organisations and three experts have rejected the plan and described the participation process as a “mockery”.
A World Bank report on land governance has been criticised by NGOs. Meanwhile the Bank pushed ahead with the Benchmarking the Business of Agriculture initiative despite civil society concerns.
Chilean civil society groups demand that a controversial hydroelectric project, which is projected to have a negative impact on environment and Santiago's supply of drinking water, be reconsidered.
The World Bank, in conjunction with the G20, is reinvigorating its infrastructure focus, paying particular attention to leveraging resources from the private sector and investing in fragile and conflict affected states. It announced a return to big hydropower projects, despite continued concerns about projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guatemala and Uganda.
This session examined Colombia's private sector partnerships and poverty eradication programme.
The session focused on the World Bank's development strategy, poverty eradication goals, global inequality, and the threat of climate change.
This session featured a presentation from UN special rapporteur on the links between financial and housing crises, safeguards and the right to adequate housing.
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.
The Corporate Scorecard’s accountability gap is symptomatic of a broader failure on the part of the WBG to fully internalise, integrate and learn from the work of its accountability mechanisms.
