Social services

News

World Bank pushed to open up Bolivia water arbitration

17 September 2002

The International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, an independent part of the World Bank Group, is set to begin hearings on a Bank-backed water privatisation deal in which Bechtel took over the public water company in Bolivia’s third largest city, Cochabamba.

Knowledge

News

World Bank questions ethics of World Summit report response

At the launch of its World Development Report 2003, the Bank was angered by the distribution of a joint Heinrich Boell-Bretton Woods Project briefing which assembled critiques of the WDR by academics and activists.

17 September 2002

Accountability

News

New report queries World Bank influence over PRSP analysis

The World Bank plays a powerful role in determining the policies chosen by PRSP countries. A new report provides a critical assessment of the current moves to introduce Poverty and Social Impact Analysis (PSIA), and recommends taking further action to break the Bank’s near monopoly on development analysis and control of policy formulation process.

17 September 2002

Rights

News

Turkish oil project raises human rights, governance concerns

An agreement between oil multinationals and the government of Turkey for an IFC-backed pipeline exempts the companies from obligations under Turkish law that may threaten the project’s profits, including environmental, social and human rights legislation.

17 September 2002

Conditionality

News

The IMF in Latin America: tough cop, social worker or skunk?

Three recent papers which attempt to analyse the IMF’s role in the Argentinean crisis are examined: ex-IMF senior economist Michael Mussa, the Center for Global Development’s Nancy Birdsall and Mark Weisbrot of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

17 September 2002

Rights

News

UN report urges greater IMF and WB accountability

The United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Report 2002 has called for more democracy and accountability of international financial institutions.

17 September 2002

Knowledge

Analysis

Cornering the Market: The World Bank and trade capacity building

The Bank’s role in trade capacity building affords enormous influence over the hearts and minds of trade policy makers and the way in which trade is mainstreamed into national development plans. The initial experience of the Integrated Framework programme shows that there is reason for concern. (September 2002)

16 September 2002 | Briefings