In late October the G7 took limited steps to strengthen the international financial architecture, after the World Bank-IMF annual meetings ended with a plethora of proposals but no substantive agreement.
International
Accountability
News
New Bank fraud hotline
The World Bank Group has set up a telephone hotline to provide a central point for reporting allegations of fraud and corruption.
Knowledge
News
Major new Bank report on aid
A major new Policy Research Report by the Bank argues that it is pointless to provide aid money to countries unless they have certain economic policies and a good institutional environment.
Knowledge
News
New Bank paradigm: Stiglitz and Fine approaches clash
In October World Bank Chief Economist Joe Stiglitz made another major speech going “beyond the well-documented failures of the Washington consensus to begin providing the foundations of an alternative paradigm”.
IFI governance
News
IMF looks to hire PR firm
The IMF has decided to hire a new public relations firm to bolster its battered image.
IFI governance
News
The future of NGO World Bank strategy discussed
In October the Bank Information Center held a strategy meeting for 80 people from NGOs and foundations concerned about the World Bank.
News
IMF forecasts in doubt again
Just two weeks after it published its “World Economic Outlook” in September the Fund admitted some of its figures were out of date and would have to be revised downward.
Land
News
Mexico project reveals Bank planning, supervision failings
A detailed paper by Trasparencia traces the history and execution of the Mexican Rainfed Areas Development Project.
Accountability
News
IFC new ombudsman, consultation document
The IFC is appointing an environmental and social compliance ombudsman to monitor implementation of environmental and social policies.
Finance
News
IMF Articles change on hold
Action to change the IMF’s Articles of Agreement to extend the Fund’s purview to cover capital account liberalisation has been put on hold since the financial crisis.
Conditionality
News
ESAF reviews latest
NGOs’ comments on the findings and recommendations of the ESAF reviews will be published and discussed by the Board soon.
Rights
News
IFC policies confirmed
The International Finance Corporation has finalised its rewording of the Bank’s social and environmental policies to fit its clientele and business cycle, and many of the policies are about to be signed off by the Board.
Featured briefings
6 April 2023
World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings 2023
5 April 2023
The IMF at the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: The need for governance reform
As the world celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is time the IMF’s shareholders use the opportunities provided by the anniversary and growing calls for reforms to the international financial architecture to redesign the IMF’s governance structures and programmes to ensure they are consistent with the commitments outlined in 1948 and with international human rights law.
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.