WB/IMF Annual Meetings Information

Issue #2: Accreditation and Events

Thursday, March 31, 2011

accreditation!!!

Please note that accreditation closes Monday, April 5th. All CSO representatives attending the World Bank Spring Meetings must submit an accreditation request by then. Click here to register. For more information, contact civilsociety@worldbank.org or call +1-202-473-1840.

In this update:

Visas
World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting dates and details
Events
Who's in Town

1. Visas

The IMF and the World Bank do not assist in the visa application process. They will, however, issue you a letter confirming your accreditation status once you have received your accreditation in order to facilitate the visa application process. For those requiring a visa to enter the United State, the Bank suggests that you request accreditation as soon as possible, since numerous applicants have reported delays in the visa processing period in the past few years. To request a letter of confirmation, please contact: civilsociety@worldbank.org.

2. World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting dates and details

The Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund normally meet once a year to discuss the work of their respective institutions.

In recent years, the Spring Meetings have been preceded by meetings of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), the Development Committee (DC), the Group of Twenty and various other groups of members. At the conclusion of their meetings, the IMFC and the Development Committee, as well as several other groups, issue communiqués. These documents are public and posted on the World Bank and IMF's websites.

More about the DC (World Bank website)

More about the IMFC (IMF website)

civil society policy forum

If you are planning a session for the Civil Society Policy Forum, please tell John Garrison or Karla Chaman ASAP!

The World Bank and International Monetary Fund Civil Society Teams will be organizing, as in previous years, a Civil Society Policy Forum which is geared to promoting substantive dialogue and exchange of views between Bank/Fund staff, civil society representatives, government officials, academics, and others. The CS Forum will be held at the World Bank and IMF Headquarters from April 13 – 16.

The CS Forum schedule of sessions will be prepared with an inclusive and participatory approach that reflects a diversity of CSOs interests. The sessions are normally organized individually or jointly by the Bank, Fund, and CSOs and focus on a variety of issues. Past topics have addressed issues such as food and financial crisis, governance, climate change, transparency, financial sector, education, economic growth, amongst others. We expect to host some 40 policy sessions during the CS Forum.

As in the past, CSOs representatives attending the Spring Meetings are encouraged to propose policy topics for the Forum. We suggest that you do so in light of the following criteria:

a. Expand CSO Participation: We encourage more CSOs to host sessions or participate as session panelists, particularly from developing countries, and promote more joint developed and developing country sessions.

b. Promote Diversity and Relevance of Topics: We want to be as inclusive as possible and will thus gather as many proposals for session topics as possible in order to reflect the diversity and complexity of development issues. We will also consider those topics from which the Bank and Fund can most benefit from a dialogue with CSOs.

The Fund and the Bank Civil Society Teams will work more closely with a group of CSOs this year to review the proposals received and try to develop a wide-ranging yet balanced schedule. Since we have been receiving more sessions than we have times and rooms available, we will suggest clustering the sessions which have similar topics. We also ask that CSOs host a maximum of only two sessions, although they can be co-hosts in other sessions. Based on the criteria above, we will then contact the proponent CSO to schedule the session or propose an alternative.

In addition to the topic, proponent CSOs are expected to propose their own formats for the sessions, although we strongly recommend organizing them as panels and leaving plenty of time for discussion, in order to make them as interactive and interesting as possible. Session proponents should also realize that the size and composition of the audience will vary depending on the topic interest and day/time selected. We often have 2-3 sessions running simultaneously and thus some sessions will invariably have smaller audiences. Those CSOs interested in hosting (or co-hosting), please send the following information:

1. Title of the session
2. Hosting organization (s)
3. One paragraph description of the topic (up to 200 words)
4. Chair and Panelists (name, title, organization of each)

For policy sessions related to International Monetary Fund issues please send your proposal to Karla Chaman (kchaman@imf.org); for topics related to the Bank please send your session proposals to John Garrison (jgarrison@worldbank.org). We will list all the topics of session proposals we received and the draft schedule by mid-March.

CSOs will be able to attend an Orientation Session on the World Bank Group and IMF and a "CSO Reception” with senior managers of the World Bank and IMF. CSOs will also be able to follow via video link the official plenary sessions and press conferences. Finally, CSOs can schedule meetings with Bank/Fund staff and Executive Directors, as well as network with other civil society representatives from throughout the world.

Registration and Badge Pick-up

The Spring Meetings Registration office and badge pick-up will be located in the World Bank H building (600 19th Street, NW) and will be open for the entire week of the Meetings from Monday, April 11 through Sunday, April 17.

Important: Please print the letter you received as an attachment to your accreditation confirmation email, and bring it with you. You will need this letter to both facilitate your visa request as well as to gain access to the World Bank and IMF Building. Once you arrive in Washington DC, proceed to the Registration Counter at 600 19th Street, NW where you can register and receive your identification badge and information on the Civil Society Policy Forum.

Civil Society Meeting Rooms / Work Spaces

CSO representatives accredited to the Spring Meetings will have at their disposal two meeting spaces in the IMF and WB buildings available from Wednesday, April 13 through Sunday, April 17.

The CSO press room will this year, be located in the HQ2 building of the International Monetary Fund (1900 Pennsylvania Ave NW) right next to the new main press center (room number TBC). It will be equipped with a number of computers, printers, a copier and a live feed from the press conference room. All communiqués and other press releases, once public and made available to the journalists will also be distributed in the CSO room. CSOs may also schedule meeting with journalists and press conferences on a first-come-first-serve basis. Please contact the CSO Team at IMF if you want to schedule a press release.

At the World Bank Main Complex building (1818 H Street NW), CSOs will be able to access the CSO Space located on the C1 level. The CS Forum will be held in the three (3) adjacent conference rooms (MC C1-100, MC C1-200, MC C1-110) on that level. There will be wireless internet connection in that space, a photocopier, as well as two (2) smaller meeting rooms for CSO use.

The use of these conference rooms and meeting rooms will be on a first-come-first-serve basis, and if interested in scheduling any events please contact: dzhu1@worldbank.org

Access to Media / Contacts with Journalists

CSOs are allowed ample access to the media during the Spring Meetings. They have access to the Press Room and can hold press conferences in the CSO Room. In order to be considerate of the journalist’s work space and independence, however, leafleting is prohibited in the press room. CSOs may discreetly hand out materials to interested journalists and a table for CSO materials will be provided in the Press Room. While CSO representatives are not allowed in official press conferences, they will be able to follow the press events via a live TV feed located in the CSO Room next to the Press Room.

CSOs can also schedule press conferences in the CSO Room on a sign-up basis. The IMF/WB Civil Society Team staff will place all WB/IMF statements, press releases, etc. on the tables in front of the CSO Room in the IMF, as they become available. In addition, the IMF/WB civil society team staff is happy to facilitate CSO contacts with journalists as requested.

3. Events

This calendar will track both the official events of the Spring Meetings as well as unofficial events for CSOs. All proposed events for the Bank's Civil Society Policy Forum should be sent via email to: civilsociety@worldbank.org. Information about unofficial events for the calendar should be sent to bnatkin@bicusa.org. All times are tentative. The calendar will be updated as information becomes available.

Event	Time/Location	Organizer/RSVP/Restriction
Monday
Press Briefing: World Economic Outlook (WEO); by Olivier Blanchard, IMF Economic Counsellor and Director of Research Department	Time: 8:00am Location: Main Press Briefing Room, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Tuesday
Press Briefing: Fiscal Monitor Report; by Carlo Cottarelli, Director of the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department	Time: 10:00am Location:Main Press Briefing Room, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Orientation Session on the IMF and World Bank Staff from the IMF and WBG will provide CSOs with information on institutional origins, organizational structure, key policies, recent reforms, and program implementation.	Time: 9:00am - 3:00pm Location: IMF Building Room: HQ 1 - 7104	International Monetary Fund / World Bank Group
Wednesday
Inspection Panel - Civil Society meeting and discussion The Inspection Panel, in coordination with CIEL, would like to invite you to a gathering to discuss the work of the Inspection Panel, its activities and current investigations, and issues of mutual concern.	Time: 9:00 am - 10:30am Location: CIEL, 1350 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 1100	Center for International Environmental Law
Welcome Breakfast for CSOs Staff from the Civil Society Teams at the IMF and WBG will welcome accredited CSOs, present the schedule of the Civil Society Policy Forum, and discuss the policy agenda for the Spring Meetings	Time: 8:30am - 9:00am Location: MC C1 – 100	International Monetary Fund / World Bank Group
Press Briefing: Global Financial Stability Report; by José Viñals, Financial Counsellor and Director of the IMF's Monetary and Capital Markets Department	Time: 9:00am Location: Main Press Briefing Room, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
IMF Consultation: Review of Conditionality and Design of Fund-supported Programs	Time: 11:00am - 12:30 pm Location: IMF - HQ1 Events Hall	International Monetary Fund
Youth Perspectives and Challenges in a Globalized World	Time: 12:30pm -2:30pm Location: TBC	International Monetary Fund
Thursday
Press Briefing: World Bank President Robert Zoellick	Time: 8:45am Location: Main Press Briefing Room, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Press Briefing: IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn	Time: 9:30am Location: Main Press Briefing Room, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Transition Moments: Past and Present Speakers: Marwan Muasher (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace); Jayendra Naidoo (WDR Advisory Council Member and Former South African Negotiator), Roelf Meyer (Former South African Minister) A moderated panel discussion drawing out lessons from the transition experience of South Africa and other countries in the context of current events in North Africa, Middle East, and elsewhere	Time: 10:00am - 11:30am Location: H Building (600 19th St. NW) Black Auditorium	World Bank
Will REDD Save the Forests and the Climate? Three years of negotiations have seen rainforest nations and potential donors fight to see their particular blueprint for REDD adopted. As negotiations have moved forward, pledges of funding from donor countries have grown in size, with a final tally of between $4.5 billion and $6 billion dollars agreed at Copenhagen, for a 3 to 5 year period. In parallel to this process, the promise of bilateral and multilateral funding has precipitated rainforest nations to put forward REDD plans. In many cases, this has happened in advance of minimum safeguards and objectives being agreed through the UN process in Cancun. This event will explore to what extent these REDD plans stand to deliver positive benefits for the climate, biodiversity and people.	Time: 11:00am - 12:30pm Location: TBC	Greenpeace, Bank Information Center
Tax Havens and Tax Secrecy and their Impact on Developing Countries International tax evasion and avoidance result in large losses to developing country governments, at a time when they already face a lack of public revenue. To recoup these losses and spur greater resource mobilization will require reforms. Two key reforms are: (1) exchanging greater information between tax authorities in different countries; and (2) strengthening country-by-country reporting standards. The G20 has already acknowledged the linkage between tax havens and development. This panel will explore the likelihood that these reforms will be enacted and the role civil society can play in supporting them.	Time:11:00am - 12:30pm Location: TBC	InterAction, Action Aid
Seminar: From Crisis to Stability: the Role of the Financial Sector Assessment Program	Time: 11:00am - 12:30pm Location: HQ 1-5-502, IMF Headquarters	IMF Monetary and Capital Markets Department
2011 WDR Launch Presentation: Citizen Security, Justice, and Jobs Speakers: Opening Presentation: Sarah Cliffe and Nigel Roberts (WDR Co-Directors); Discussants: Mo Ibrahim (WDR Advisory Council Member, Chairman of Mo Ibrahim Foundation); Louise Arbour (WDR Advisory Council Member, President of ICG); Jayendra Naidoo (WDR Advisory Council Member, Former South African Negotiator); CHAIR / Introductory Remarks: Robert Zoellick (President, WB) Presentation of the WDR 2011 findings and recommendations with WDR 2011 Advisory Council Members and Co-Directors.	Time: 12:00pm - 1:30pm Location: H Building (600 19th St. NW) Black Auditorium	World Bank
Women and Girl’s Health: Initiatives, Impediments, and Links to Development Speakers: Gill Greer (Director-General, International Planned Parenthood Federation), Michael Anderson (Director General Policy and Global Issues, British Department for International Development), Cristian Baeza (Director for Health, Nutrition, and Population, World Bank), Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda (General Secretary of World YWCA and member of African Women Leaders Network), CHAIR - Ian Solomon (US Executive Director) Giving women and girls access to health care is a key element of development and balanced and sustained economic growth. Yet today over 200 million women still cannot access modern family planning, and reliable reproductive health care is unavailable to hundreds of millions more. Civil society, governments and development agencies must work together to reach women and girls those most in need of health services and develop strategies to increase their awareness and access to them. Notably in the last year, donor and recipient governments have developed bilateral and multilateral initiatives to address these underserved needs. These include the World Bank’s Reproductive Health Action Plan, the United States’ Global Health Initiative, and the United Kingdom’s Results Framework. The session will highlight and take stock of the numerous efforts underway to provide a coherent and coordinated response to the pressing health needs of women and girls in developing countries, the successes and ongoing challenges these efforts face, and recommendations for future action. Issues to be addressed include: The status of ongoing initiatives in health -- particularly reproductive health -- progress, challenges, and existing gaps. Report on progress on the World Bank’s implementation of the Reproductive Health Action Plan (RHAP). The impact of the global financial crisis and the move from aid to growth on women and girl’s health policy. The relationship of these numerous efforts to wider trends in international development cooperation.	Time: 2:00pm - 3:30pm Location: TBC	International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), World Bank
The Policy of Transparency and Accountability of IFIs vis-a-vis Governments, Private Companies, and Civil Society This will be an interactive session geared to discussing a number of questions. How can international financial institutions (IFIs) facilitate citizen empowerment through transparency and access to information? How can IFIs contribute to strengthening the role of CSOs to monitor and demand accountability from governments, private sector, and civil society, as well as evaluate the implementation of public policies? Is this the proper role for IFIs, and if so, how can they most affectively do this?	Time: 2:00pm - 3:30pm Location: TBC	Instituto de Comunicación y Desarrollo (ICD), Centro de Estudios y Promoción del Desarrollo (DESCO)
Financing Action on Adaptation in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) from Debt-for-climate Swaps, a Global Approach This session will explore the opportunities and challenges of building a global approach for debt-for-climate swaps which not only channel needed climate adaption resources to Small Island Developing States (SIDS), but establish financial mechanisms that would secure the sustainable management of these resources. Climate adaptation initiatives may include: improved marine policy and regulatory protection regimes; coral and mangrove restoration projects; provision of alternative livelihoods for affected users; impact reduction from residential and tourism activities in the marine areas; and raising public awareness and information dissemination.	Time: 2:00pm - 3:30pm Location: TBC	The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
Seminar: Emerging Markets—Leading the Recovery, but what next?	Time: 3:30pm -4:30pm Location: HQ1 Meeting Hall A&B, IMF Headquarters
CSO Roundtable on Food Price Volatility Speakers: Robert Zoellick (President, WB), David Nabarro (Special Representative for Food Security and Nutrition, UN), Hugh Bredenkamp ( Deputy Director of the Strategy, Policy, and Review Department, IMF), CO-Chairs: Raymond Offenheiser (President, Oxfam/America), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (Managing Director, WB) Global food prices are rising to dangerous levels and threaten tens of millions of poor people around the world. The World Bank’s food price index rose by 15 percent between October 2010 and January 2011, is 29 percent above its level a year earlier, and is only 3 percent below its 2008 peak. The WB estimates rising food prices have pushed about 44 million people into poverty since last June. Bank, CSOs, and donor agency representatives will share their perspectives on the impact of food price increases on poor people, as well as initiatives undertaken to address food insecurity in developing countries.	Time: 3:30pm - 5:30pm Location: MC 13-121	World Bank
Inspection Panel Open House for CSO Representatives and WB Staff The Inspection Panel is the independent accountability mechanism of the World Bank. The Panel invites all civil society organizations attending the Spring Meetings and Bank management and staff to its Open House. Please come and share your experiences and hear about Panel operations.	Time: 5:00pm - 6:30pm Location: MC 10-507	Inspection Panel
Fiscal Forum: Fiscal Adjustment and Risks—Roundtable	Time: 5:00pm - 6:30pm Location: Conference Hall 1, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
CSO Reception Caroline Anstey (External Affairs Vice President, WB) and Caroline Atkinson (Director for External Affairs Departmen, IMF) are hosting this welcome reception for CSO leaders and representatives	Time: 6:00pm - 7:30pm Location: 12th Floor Gallery Main Complex Building	World Bank, International Monetary Fund
Friday
The Road to HLF4: Ensuring Citizens Drive Their Own Development The Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness (HLF4), scheduled to take place in Busan, South Korea in November 2011, will consider how effectively donors are incorporating ownership principles into development practice. While previous forums in Paris and Accra advanced donor engagement with host country governments, how can the Forum in Busan make sure that the voices of citizens are part of an effective development conversation? This session will explore what measures donors can take to ensure citizens are driving their own development agenda. For example, how has the Poverty Reduction Strategy process evolved to be more inclusive and representative of citizens? What are the ways to enhance the role of citizens in National Development Strategies? What lessons learned can influence the outcomes at HLF4?	Time: 9:00am - 10:30am Location: TBC	Oxfam America
The Financial Stability Board: Opening the Black Box The IMF and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) are the two lead organizations responsible for global financial regulations. The FSB is little understood, and for this reason CSOs should learn more about and focus some of their advocacy efforts on FSB policies and actions. This session will describe: 1) what the FSB is (how it works and policy agenda); 2) how it relates to civil society development agendas (commodity prices such as food and agriculture, tax havens and illicit finance, and sovereign debts) and; 3) opportunities for CSO advocacy.	Time: 9:00am - 10:30am Location: TBC	New Rules for Global Finance Coalition
Global Financial Crisis: the Latin-American Youth Perspective	Time: 9:00am - 10:30am Location: TBC	Espacio de Vinculación, A.C. (Mexico); Coalición Centroamericana Organizaciones Juveniles (Nicaragua)
Open Forum on Food Prices	Time: 9:00am - 11:00am Location: TBC	World Bank
Roundtable: Youth, Jobs, and Inclusive Growth in the Middle East and North Africa	Time: 9:00am - 10:30am Location: HQ2 Conference Hall 2, IMF Headquarters
Ensuring Equity in the Green Climate Fund	Time: 10:00am - 12:00pm Location: Auditorium, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies	Heinrich Boell Foundation, WRI, IPS, SAIS
MIGA Open House for CSOs This session will provide an opportunity for CSO representatives to meet with MIGA Senior Management and to discuss with them any issues of concern. CSO representatives wishing to attend may contact Cara Santos Pianesi at csantospianesi@worldbank.org.	Time: 10:00am - 11:00am Location: 1800 G Street, NW 12th floor, Room 400	Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)
Winds of Change: Will They Bring a New Paradigm to Development Assistance Speakers: Dennis Whittle (Co-founder, GlobalGiving.org), Joel Selanikio (CEO and Co-Founder of DataDyne), Co-CHAIRS: Tom Grubisich (Independent Consultant), and Jennifer Lentfer (Online Community Manager, CDRA) As the people of the Middle East “speak truth to power” and their actions reverberate across the world, donors, recipients and CSOs are questioning how development assistance can help or hinder community action that is actively challenging the bonds of poverty and lack of voice and seeking to create wealth and share in its benefits. Despite the imperatives of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (2005) and the Accra Agenda for Action (2008), development aid remains too-often focused on building the absorptive capacity and the degree of formal structure needed to implement large-scale programs. Only a small proportion of mostly urban-based CSOs receive aid, many implicitly forced to conform to this model in order to gain access to donor resources. WiserEarth.org has already registered over 110,000 local organizations and movements working on a wide variety of issues in many countries. They estimate that they may well be over 1,000,000 such grassroots groups operating across the globe. Therefore, capacity development initiatives are needed that will support a wider number of local leaders, enabling community initiatives to emerge and gain strength, and in the process increasing the demand for human rights and development that truly reaches the people. This session, structured as a roundtable, will bring together people inside and outside of the World Bank Group/IMF/CSO community who are actively engaged in corrective and imaginative funding and capacity-developing approaches that unleash the inherent strengths of local people.	Time: 11:00am - 12:30pm Location: TBC	Community Development Resource Association
Press Briefing: IMF Western Hemisphere Department Director Nicholas Eyzaguirre	Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm Location: Press Briefing Room, 3rd Floor, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Consultation on Program for Results (P4R)	Time: 2:00pm - 3:30pm Location: TBC	World Bank
Press Briefing: IMF European Department Director, Antonio Borges	Time: 2:30pm - 3:30pm Location: Press Briefing Room, 3rd Floor, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters
Promoting Policy research in Developing Countries	Time: 4:00pm - 5:30pm Location: TBC	Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC) Azerbaijan and Armenia
Commodity Market (de)Regulation: Development Consequences and Prospects Speakers: Steve Suppan (Senior Policy Analyst, IATP), Julian Oram (Senior Programme Officer, World Development Movement), Kiama Kaara (Program Coordinator, Kenya Debt Relief Network), Adhemar Mineiro (Senior Policy Analyst, Brazilian Network for Regional Integration), Chair: Aldo Caliari (Secretary, IWG) While one of the issues being discussed at the upcoming G-20 Finance Ministers Meeting on April 14-15 in Washington are the causes and remedies of commodity price volatility, most governments have been reluctant to analyze market deregulation as a price volatility driver. This is partly because of a purported lack of probative data to demonstrate “smoking gun” causality, and partly because of the difficulties in agreeing on multilateral policy remedies that can be converted into enforceable rules. And yet, as the UN Conference on Trade and Development secretariat noted in a 2010 paper, “highly volatile commodity prices acts as a serious distortion on the development process.” This session will discuss some of the key policy struggles in the U.S. and EU legislation to regulate the ‘over the counter’ derivatives market and how regulation might prevent the excessive speculation portion of commodity price volatility. Panelists will discuss how commodity market price volatility has affected imported food and energy bills, and commodity export revenues in developing countries. The panel will also consider if and how U.S. and EU regulatory reform can be multi-lateralized to improve developing country capacity to manage commodity price risks. If this is not possible, then what developing country policies are needed to reduce import bills and enhance export revenues?	Time: 4:00pm - 5:30pm Location: TBC	Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), International Working Group on Trade and Finance Linkages (IWG)
CSO Happy Hour at Buffalo Billiards Come eat, drink, play games, and get to know your CSO colleagues after a day of meetings	Time: 5:00pm - ??? Location: Buffalo Billiards 1330 19th St. NW	Bank Information Center
Saturday
CSO strategy session on World Bank Safeguards	Time: 9:00am - 1:00pm Location: CIEL, 1350 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 1100	Center for International Environmental Law CSOs only
Press Briefing: IMF Asia and Pacific Department Director, Anoop Singh	Time: 10:00am - 10:45am Location: Press Briefing Room, 3rd Floor, HQ 2, IMF Headquarters

4. Who's in town

BIC is compiling a list of CSO representatives who will be in town. If you're coming, please write bnatkin@bicusa.org with any of the following information

Name
Organization
Position
Country
Phone number
E-mail address
Dates you'll be in town
Hotel you're staying at

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WB/IMF Annual Meetings Information

Issue #2: Accreditation and Events

accreditation!!!

In this update:

1. Visas

2. World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting dates and details

civil society policy forum

Registration and Badge Pick-up

Sponsored CSO and Youth Leaders

Civil Society Meeting Rooms / Work Spaces

Access to Media / Contacts with Journalists

3. Events

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

4. Who's in town