The projects and policies supported by the World Bank Group can be detrimental to people and the environment. Whether harm occurs because Bank operations fail to comply with the institution’s own policies and standards or in spite of adhering to those policies, affected individuals and communities must have the means to complain and seek redress.
The struggle to hold the Bank accountable for harms caused by its operations is ongoing. As a multinational institution, the Bank claims immunity from most laws that are binding on its member states. Formally, the World Bank Group is accountable only to its owners, i.e. governments that are the Bank’s shareholders. Its Charter does not require it to be accountable to civil society or to the communities that are negatively impacted by its projects.
Civil society groups have employed a range of strategies to increase the accountability of the Bank and other IFIs for their actions. On one hand, groups have sought establishment of mechanisms inside the IFIs to provide channels for the redress of civil society grievances. On the other, a range of external accountability challenges have brought significant pressure on the Bank and its peer institutions.
Nikki Reisch, Bank Information Center
Participants in Ndjamena-Yaounde World Bank evaluation workshop, 2005
Opportunities within the Institutions
Today, the World Bank Group has two independent mechanisms to which citizens whose lives have been or could potentially be harmed in any way by the projects or policies funded by the WBG can seek recourse: the Inspection Panel (IP) and the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO). See the "Backgrounds and Trends" section on this page for information on both mechanisms.
External Accountability
Beyond the internal accountability mechanisms, civil society groups have tried to exploit other avenues of oversight and accountability of the World Bank. Because the Bank Group claims immunity from both international and national law, cases cannot readily be filed against it or its employees in courts. Given this situation, claimants often consider a combination of other strategies and tactics. One of the most important tools that civil society can use in the struggle for accountability is the media. Because of the Bank Group’s sensitivity to its reputation, highlighting substantiated grievances in the press can often help civil society achieve remedies or prevent future harm. Other tactics that civil society groups are using to pressure the institution include organizing public hearings, conducting tribunals of eminent persons, lobbying parliamentarians (and promoting parliamentary oversight of the Bank), committing acts of civil disobedience, holding referendums, and appealing to UN bodies and regional entities (such as the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights). Such actions undoubtedly spotlight an issue and amplify concerns, helping to increase pressure on the Bank.
Information on How to File a Complaint.
This page was last modified on June 6, 2008.