The World Bank and other multilateral development banks continue to push for public-private partnerships for infrastructure projects, despite concerns of debt risks and lack of transparency.
Public-private partnerships are pushed in Africa, but the risks and costs must be fully understood and minimised, including the impact on the poor.
Notes from a PPP civil society strategy session taking place during the week of the World Bank/IMF annual meetings 2016.
CSOs have refused to participate in a World Bank PPP consultation until transparency and accountability concerns are addressed.
Reports expose the scale of damage caused by PPPs, adding weight to broader concerns around the Bank’s aggressive promotion of them.
World Bank backs private sector voucher project in Uganda as poorest women lose out.
Despite their popularity, PPPs have a very bad track record of delivering cost-effective investment for governments, and pose additional and serious problems by reducing transparency and accountability.
Ghana left with $250 million bill for unused gas in 2019 primarily due to ‘take or pay’ clause in Bank-supported PPP contract.
Report by global union found privatisation and corporate capture are obstacles to progress on 2030 agenda. Independent research of education PPP trial in Liberia finds unsustainable costs.
The IFC’s push for the PPP model, as well as its preference for healthcare ‘provision’ and the results-based payment approach, collectively undermine the human right to universal healthcare and the achievement of the SDGs.
Concerns have been raised about the slow progress with the Scaling up Renewable Energy Program in Low Income Countries (SREP). Ghana, Haiti and Nicaragua's investment plans were approved, with questions asked about the loan/grant ratio, promotion of PPPs, and reliance on funding from the Green Climate Fund.
World Bank president Jim Yong Kim reiterated the Bank’s intentions to develop a global infrastructure facility, while the G20 process on infrastructure continued to focus on PPPs. The G20 accountability report noted failure to address environmental safeguards, and criticism on privatisation in the energy sector was raised by PSIRU.
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.
New paper analyses the IMF 16th Quota Review and identifies key governance reforms feasible in the current economic and geopolitical context.
