Key Issues

BIC has partnered with NGOs around the world to engage in policy reform for some of these issues aimed at creating fundamental changes within the MDBs that empower citizens to influence decisions that affect them. These policy reform activities are reflected in these pages.

BIC’s approach to its work on these issues is driven by three key principles: promoting increased citizen participation in MDB activities, greater transparency, and strengthened accountability at these institutions. Learn more about these issues and related policies from the links below.

BIC’s “Civil Society Guide to IFI Policy Reviews” provides a comprehensive list of all current MDB policy reviews, including important dates during the review process, links to MDB documents and webpages related to the different policies, and critical civil society analyses of these different policies and review processes.

Accountability The Bank Information Center promotes three overarching principles for the international financial institutions (IFIs): accountability, participation and transparency. The IFIs are rarely held accountable for their actions.

Debt Large amounts of foreign debt act as an albatross around the collective necks of many low and middle-income countries in the Global South. Funds that nations could be allocating to social expenditures such as education, health care, water, and sanitation are instead being diverted to repay foreign debt.

Energy & Extractive Industries Extractive industries (oil, gas, and mining) and energy projects leave heavy environmental and social footprints both locally and globally, often causing irreversible damage to land, water, and community infrastructure, and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. They typically involve large-scale investments in such projects as hydroelectric dams, gas and oil extraction and transport, and coal and mineral mines.

Environmental & Social Policies The environmental and social impacts of international financial institution (IFI) projects and programs are among the most controversial aspects of these publicly-backed development institutions. Deforestation caused by road building through tropical rainforests, forced resettlement due to mega-dam projects, social dislocation from macro- and sectoral economic reform programs are just some of the past and present impacts of IFI financing that have attracted international attention and advocacy.

IFI Governance How do the international financial institutions oversee their own operations? What internal regulations monitor and, more importantly, ensure responsible behavior? And more broadly, what mechanisms outside of the institutions influence IFI behavior? What role do elected officials, donor and borrowing governments, international bodies like the UN, and the public play to influence the activities of these institutions? These questions, and their answers, frame discussions of IFI Governance.

Infrastructure Basic infrastructure is critical to reducing poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Over 2.7 billion people live on less than $2 a day. One point six billion people lack access to electricity and 1.1 billion lack access to clean water. Infrastructure development is one of the greatest needs of the developing world. The recognition of the types of infrastructure projects that are successful at eliminating poverty is critical to determining the projects that the IFIs should fund.

Trade

Transparency The international financial institutions (IFIs) suffer from a "democratic deficit," both in terms of their own internal governance as well as their role in limiting the policy options of member states. This deficit is in part derived from the secrecy surrounding many of their operations.

U.S. Government Oversight As multilateral institutions, project and policy decisions of the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) are taken by stakeholder country appointees called Executive Directors. The individuals on the front line of the US relationship with the MDBs are the US Executive Directors (USEDs) and Alternate Executive Directors who are posted to their Bank's headquarters and represent the United States in executive board meetings.