http://www.bicusa.org/en/Issue.27.aspx The latest news on Transparency at the IFC from the Bank Information Center 10 http://www.infodev.org/images/infodev.gif http://www.bicusa.org/en/Issue.27.aspx In a second open letter, Indonesian NGOs detail their needs so that an open dialogue can take place. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12618.aspx Wed, 11 Apr 2012 14:42:10 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12618.aspx The new Forest Investment Program promises to affect entire communities, and yet it's not being made available in a way that Indonesians can easily access, read, or comment on. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12610.aspx Thu, 22 Mar 2012 17:05:57 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12610.aspx Beatrice Edwards of Government Accountability Project argues against the U.S recapitalization of the World Bank for 2012 in light of the Bank’s involvement in projects linked to corruption allegations. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12425.aspx Wed, 27 Apr 2011 12:51:42 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.12425.aspx Kirk Herbertson, Kim Thompson and Robert Goodland of the World Resources Institute ask why the World Bank Group – which is owned by the same governments that demanded a human rights policy at the EBRD – is hesitant to discuss human rights openly. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11918.aspx Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:30:02 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11918.aspx In light of the International Finance Corporation's review of its Sustainability Policy, Performance Standards and Disclosure Policy, the Bank Information Center has outlined its major concerns and policy recommendations that it will be presenting to the IFC throughout the review process. BIC highlights the issues of extractive industries revenue and contract transparency; reporting on development outcomes; and the principle of free, prior and informed consent and broad community support for risky projects. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11894.aspx Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:06:44 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11894.aspx The proposed capital increases for the World Bank and IFC would expand their size without expanding the scope of their reform. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11785.aspx Tue, 30 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11785.aspx In 2009, Development Policy Operations increased dramatically as a percentage of overall World Bank lending, from an average of about 33% to over 50%. Dogged by concerns that stem from a lack of a strong set of safeguard policies or clear results, this shift to greater dependence on DPLs/DPOs raises concerns about arbitrage by Bank clients to soften or avoid transparency and accountability commitments. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11612.aspx Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:24:27 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11612.aspx The World Bank is quietly preparing the first capital increase in nearly 20 years to replenish the coffers after unprecedented lending in 2008 and the coming two years. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11608.aspx Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:13:29 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11608.aspx Guadalajara Civil Society Meetings in Guadalajara, Mexico open with increased demands for consultation process accountability, transparency guarantees. Good faith participation by CSOs rests on Bank decision to disclose and discuss a second draft of the proposed revisions to the Independent Consultation and Inspection Mechanism (ICIM). http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11606.aspx Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:29:07 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11606.aspx On October 12, the Agency for Promotion of Private Investment (ProInversión) approved contract bidding for purchase of energy from hydroelectric centers, which are expected to begin supply between 2013 and 2015, stated Executive Director Cayetana Aljovín. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11581.aspx Sun, 25 Oct 2009 10:50:59 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11581.aspx BNDES has invested close to $R 5 bilion in the last two years as shareholders in the largest beef shippers, including JBS Friboi and Bertin. In Bertin alone, BNDES has purchased 27% equity position. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11565.aspx Sat, 24 Oct 2009 07:55:18 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11565.aspx Civil society has voiced concerns regarding the Bank’s social and environmental sustainability policies. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11520.aspx Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:07:38 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11520.aspx In the midst of a possible energy crisis en Peru over the coming years, increasing criticism of exports of as much as half of the Camisea gas reserves requires greater attention http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11395.aspx Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:30:37 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11395.aspx QUILLABAMBA, Peru | A national strike by thousands of rain-forest Indians is spawning accusations of a proxy war involving Venezuela and an emboldened peasant movement seeking to undermine Peru's pro-U.S. president. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11302.aspx Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:24:46 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11302.aspx Just two weeks after the publication of Greenpeace's report "Slaughtering the Amazon" the IFC halts a $30 million payment to the Bertin corporation which was using the IFC loan to expand further into the Amazon. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11258.aspx Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:10:29 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11258.aspx Trends in the relationship between World Bank and IFC technical assistance policies and the IFC’s investment portfolio raise questions over possible conflicts of interest. Disclosure at the IFC remains opaque, making details of projects and policies hard to come by. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11117.aspx Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:06:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11117.aspx Civil society requests for a delay go unanswered as the project is approved in the absence of an environmental impact assessment and amid significant transparency and governance issues. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11047.aspx Fri, 20 Feb 2009 16:23:40 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.11047.aspx Six months after the Office of Compliance, Advisor/Ombudsman (CAO) of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) found the IFC out of compliance with its own regulations for toxic emissions at the Karachaganak Oil and Gas Condensate Field in western Kazakhstan, the case remains open with the CAO because the IFC has failed to bring into compliance significant failures in the IFC’s environmental monitoring of activities at the Karachaganak field. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3926.aspx Mon, 27 Oct 2008 13:28:23 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3926.aspx The International Finance Corporation's (IFC) website on extractive industries government payment disclosure has made progress, but certain gaps in data availability remain. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3924.aspx Mon, 27 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3924.aspx The World Bank Group (WBG) loans to countries in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) increased by 30% between FY07 and FY08. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3904.aspx Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3904.aspx The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a US$50 million loan for expansion of oil and gas extraction operations in the Timan-Pechora basin of the northern Komi Republic in Russia. Various civil society groups have raised concerns of the major project's implications for the environment and the indigenous Komi-Izhemts people's rights. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3902.aspx Fri, 19 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3902.aspx IFI involvement in mining and oil projects in the Timan-Pechora basin raises environmental and social concerns. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3882.aspx Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3882.aspx The International Finance Corporation (IFC) fails to provide adequate links to government payment disclosures by its extractive industry clients. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3874.aspx Thu, 14 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3874.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Azerbaijan. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3792.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3792.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Kazakhstan. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3794.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3794.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in the Kyrgyz Republic. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3795.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3795.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Mongolia. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3796.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3796.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Georgia. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3797.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3797.aspx Recent developments, decisions, and civil society activities related to activities of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in Russia. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3798.aspx Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3798.aspx In response to requests from the Bank Information Center (BIC) and other civil society organizations, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) has begun providing links to where IFC extractive industry clients disclose their payments to host governments. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3734.aspx Tue, 15 Apr 2008 17:52:05 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3734.aspx The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), found that 41% of the IFC projects studied had low development ratings. IFC performed particularly poorly in Africa and Asia, where only half of its projects had positive development outcomes. In Africa, the quality of IFC work was particularly poor, rated as “high” in only 45% of projects, as compared to 68% in other regions. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3466.aspx Wed, 22 Aug 2007 15:21:41 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3466.aspx BIC's new assessment reviews EI operations in more than 40 countries for the lending period of July 2005 to December 2006. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3462.aspx Fri, 17 Aug 2007 14:39:27 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3462.aspx The World Bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) has posted draft policies for public comment until April 27, 2007. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3175.aspx Fri, 23 Feb 2007 13:30:25 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3175.aspx BIC's Europe and Central Asia program has compiled an easy access source of information on International Financial Institution (IFI) disclosure policies and their weaknesses. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3082.aspx Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:32:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3082.aspx Work begins, in spite of lingering tensions http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3020.aspx Sat, 18 Nov 2006 17:02:09 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.3020.aspx The Compliance-Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) released last week its comments on the January 25th drafts of the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) Safeguards policies, which the IFC approved February 21, 2006. Following the IFC’s lead, a collection of private sector financial institutions intends to complete a review of their guiding policies on social and environmental issues, the Equator Principles. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2676.aspx Wed, 15 Mar 2006 14:37:58 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2676.aspx Warning that the International Finance Corporation’s overhaul of its social and environmental standards relies too heavily on promises of good intentions, international civil society organizations have called the IFC’s new approach a risky experiment that could leave the people and environments affected by its projects more vulnerable than they were before.<p/><a href="http://ifis.choike.org/esp/informes/307.html">Also available in Spanish </a> http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2650.aspx Tue, 21 Feb 2006 11:23:07 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2650.aspx These comments address transparency and consultation concerns with the draft IFC Disclosure Policy, Social and Environmental Sustainability Policy and Performance Standards. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2501.aspx Fri, 02 Dec 2005 09:33:08 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2501.aspx The IFI Policy Review Web page is a recent addition to the BIC website! This page is updated regularly to allow you to keep track of consultation documents, important dates, civil society analyses and more. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2107.aspx Tue, 14 Jun 2005 15:09:44 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2107.aspx BIC submits comments on the IFC's Disclosure Policy Framework calling for strengthened disclosure principles, procedures and constraints; increased institutional transparency; and increased investment-specific transparency. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2063.aspx Wed, 06 Apr 2005 12:29:20 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.2063.aspx http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1858.aspx Mon, 24 Jan 2005 09:54:41 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1858.aspx In response to a rapid and substandard policy consultation process, 26 NGOs declined to participate in the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) civil society meeting in Washington DC. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1640.aspx Wed, 06 Oct 2004 10:07:47 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1640.aspx http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1634.aspx Thu, 16 Sep 2004 15:46:57 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1634.aspx A September 9 letter signed by 76 civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) urges the IFC to protect communities that may be exposed to pollutants due to IFC-financed projects. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1628.aspx Thu, 16 Sep 2004 14:42:32 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1628.aspx This policy update introduces the ongoing policy reviews at the IFC, outlines the review process, and provides useful links to background documents. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1619.aspx Tue, 07 Sep 2004 17:28:52 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1619.aspx On July 6, 140 NGOs endorsed a letter to the IFC regarding the reviews of its environmental and social policies and standards. The IFC responds ... http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1561.aspx Mon, 09 Aug 2004 12:38:52 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1561.aspx In a letter sent to the IFC, civil society groups are calling for a greater focus on human rights and transparency as the IFC begins to draft its safeguard and disclosure policy approach papers this month. http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1523.aspx Thu, 15 Jul 2004 17:25:00 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1523.aspx A letter from the IFC notes that the IFC may move away from a “document-driven” policy to one that is based on transparency “principles” http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1477.aspx Thu, 10 Jun 2004 14:12:27 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1477.aspx http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1387.aspx Thu, 08 Apr 2004 14:17:42 GMT http://www.bicusa.org/en/Article.1387.aspx