A new report, commissioned by the Government of Norway, reveals that the World Bank has a long way to go in clarifying and operationalising its poverty reduction objectives.
International
Rights
News
Mining conference
A World Bank conference this July in Padang, Papua New Guinea, discussed “mining and the community in South-East Asia” but many NGOs known to represent mine-affected people were not invited.
Knowledge
News
What is the WDR for, and how is it produced?
Given the lack of clarity and satisfaction about how WDRs are produced, and the difficulty of persuading the authors to recognise and include alternative views, the Bretton Woods Project has written to the Bank asking for a formal explanation.
News
London information centre moves
The World Bank’s London office has transferred responsibility for providing public access to World Bank operational documents to the EMIC library at the Department of Trade and Industry, Kingsgate House, Victoria Street.
IFI governance
News
“New” IFC strategy fails to address key issues
In 1997 the IFC commissioned a welcome review of its objectives following pressure from NGOs and some Executive Directors who argued that it emphasised deal-making in response to the private sector at the expense of any clear focus on poverty alleviation or environmental protection.
Finance
News
IDA talks climax
The World Bank is now in the advanced stages of negotiation with donor countries on funding for the next 3 years of its International Development Association soft loan funding arm.
IFI governance
News
Participation Conference
Participation experiences in 20 Bank-assisted operations will be reviewed in an international conference co-sponsored by the World Bank, to be held in Washington in November 1998.
IFI governance
News
New IFC chief appointed from private sector
The IFC has just announced who will replace its Executive Vice President, Jannik Lindbaek, who is retiring because of ill health at the end of the year.
IFI governance
News
CAS publication agreed
The Bank has agreed to publish Country Assistance Strategies (CAS) - the documents which set out the Bank’s multi-year lending plans - once they have been discussed by the Board and if the borrower government requests it.
IFI governance
News
World Bank self-image revealed
This summer the World Bank’s external affairs team commissioned a detailed survey of views about what the Bank does and should do.
Knowledge
News
Controversy over knowledge development report
Drafting the 1998 World Development Report has proved so controversial that one of its co-authors resigned and the Board asked for changes which delayed its print schedule.
IFI governance
News
Distilling lessons from the ESAF Reviews
Many NGOs have fed in comments to the IMF about its staff report Distilling the Lessons of the ESAF Reviews.