At the 2015 World Bank Annual Meetings, the Office of the Executive Director – EDS 01 won the “Open for Business” award for the most transparent website among the 25 World Bank Executive Directors’ offices. Mr. McGuire, Executive Director from the United States of America, received the award during the CSO Roundtable with World Bank Executive Directors on Thursday October 9th, 2015. EDS 01 represents the United States of America. Close seconds with tied scores include EDS 03, 05 and 25, representing the United Kingdom, Germany and Sub-Saharan Africa. The offices received high scores for the publication of their respective policy positions.
On Friday October 9th, 2015, CIVICUS, BIC and Peruvian CIVICUS member Somos el Presente co-hosted the awards. As Carlo Angeles (Somos el Presente) presented Mr. McGuire with the award, he emphasized the imporantance of ”pushing forwards on Civil Society engagement and participation at the World Bank activities.”
On March 2013, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation and its partners suggested that the World Bank Executive Directors deepen their engagement with civil society by increasing transparency on their official websites. This includes announcing official travel schedules for ease of arranging in-country meetings with constituents, listing names and contact information of key staff members and their areas of responsibilities, and publishing official positions on policies and projects brought to the Board of Directors.
CIVICUS and the Bank Information Center have since developed a scorecard measuring ED offices’ progress in increasing their transparency. The “Open for Business” award is given out during World Bank’s Annual and Spring Meetings in recognition of the most transparent ED offices. During the 2015 Spring Meetings in April 2015, EDS 09 representing Asia-Pacific nations received the award.