2016 Spring Meetings - Bank Information Center

The 2016 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group took place April 11-17, 2016 in Washington, D.C. The spring 2016 Civil Society Policy Forum took place April 11-15.

Agenda

BIC participated in several panels during the Spring 2016 Civil Society Policy Forum:

What Does Shrinking Space for Civil Society Mean for the Twin Goals?

The World Bank has committed to 100% beneficiary feedback in its projects and aims through its corporate strategy to empower citizens to participate in the development process. At the same time, since 2012 over 60 countries have passed legislation restricting civil society’s ability to freely operate and many communities face intimidation or criminalization when raising concerns around development activities. This session draws on examples of restrictions on citizen voice from Egypt, Azerbaijan, and Kenya; discuss implications of restricted civil society space for the World Bank’s development goals; and raise recommendations for ways in which the Bank can ensure participatory development.

Panelists: Jackson Shaa (Narasha Community Development Group), Hend Badawy (National Endowment for Democracy), Arzu Geybullayeva (Azeri Journalist), Jeff Thindwa (World Bank Group), Jessica Evans (Human Rights Watch)
Moderated by Dr. Mark P. Lagon, President of Freedom House

Video Recording

Breaking Down Barriers to Accessing Development Information

Without accessible, understandable information, stakeholders cannot meaningfully engage in development. This session will look at the reality of civil society and affected communities’ access to information about World Bank Group-financed development programs though examples from Egypt, Mexico, and Yemen, and will discuss recommendations and steps that can be taken to ensure that stakeholders can more easily access this key information.

Panelists: Abdelmawla Ismail (Egyptian Association for Collective Rights), Mariana González Armijo (Fundar, Center for Analysis and Research), Amy Ekdawi (Bank Information Center), Sumir Lal (World Bank Group)
Moderated by José Rojas, World Bank Executive Director representing Mexico, Venezuela, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Spain

IFI Development Policy Operations: How Environmental and Social Standards Apply

A conversation on environmental and social risk management in development policy finance. National reforms implemented under policy loans from international finance institutions can drive development trends for many years after they are disbursed. Hear representatives from the World Bank Board, Operations Policy and Country Services, the Independent Evaluation Group and civil society weigh in on the 2015 Development Policy Financing Retrospective, and participate in a discussion around possibilities for achieving the highest environmental and social standards in policy-based development lending.

Co-sponsored by the Bank Information Center, urgewald, Greenpeace Indonesia and KR Foundation

Panelists: Hassan Zaman (Director for Policy and Quality, World Bank Operations Policy and Country Services), Nick York (Director of Human Development and Economic Management, Independent Evaluation Group), Arif Fiyanto (Head of Climate and Energy Campaign, Greenpeace Indonesia), Korinna Horta (Senior Policy Advisor, urgewald)
Moderator: World Bank Executive Director

Notes by Bretton Woods Project

Forests at the World Bank Group in a Post-Paris Agreement World – hosted by Conservation International

Event on the Bank’s role in supporting forest commitments coming out of COP21. The panel includes: Bank staff working on forests and climate change; CSO partners from FPP, WRI, CI, and Honduran indigenous organization MASTA; and a Norwegian government representative from NICFI.

Video Recording

Social Impact of an Influx of Workers in Infrastructure Investments – hosted by Joy for Children

Many large scale infrastructure projects, along with projects in the extractives sector, can bring a large influx of workers into communities that had previously had little experience with migrant workers. This can lead to an increase in economic activity in the community with attendant benefits to the community. However, there are also often significant negative impacts of such an influx, such as increased sexual exploitation of women and girls or pressure for adolescents to leave school and earn money selling goods to such workers. This panel will explore the impacts of an influx of workers into communities using real world examples, including the recently canceled Kamwenge-Kabarole roadway in the hope of understanding what can be done to prevent or mitigate these negative impacts while maximizing positive impacts.

Panelists: Moses Ntanga (Executive Director, Joy for Children, Uganda), Elaine Zuckerman (Executive Director, Gender Action), Emmanuel Boulet (Inter-American Development Bank), Maninder Gill (Director for the Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience (SURR) Global Practice, World Bank Group), Elana Berger (Child Rights Program Manager, Bank Information Center)

The full schedule for the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings is available on the Bank’s website.

Attendees

BIC partners in attendance included:

Abdelmawla Ismail – Egyptian Association for Collective Rights (Egypt)
Baher Shawky – Egyptian Center for Civil and Legislative Reform (Egypt)
Ragia Elgerzawy – Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (Egypt)
Salma Hussein – Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (Egypt)
Shymaa Allam – Bank Information Center
Arif Fiyanto – Greenpeace (Indonesia)
Houda Belghaji – Association Tunisienne de la Transparence dans l’Energie et les Mines (Tunisia)
Yamina Thabet – Tunisian Association for the Support of Minorities (Tunisia)
Tamara Adrian – First Transgender Women elected member of the National Assembly of Venezuela
Andres Rivera – Observatorio de Derechos Humanos y Legislación (Chile)
Amaranta Gomez – SIPIA Nación Zapoteca (México)
Ronald Cespedes – Fundación Diversencia Nación Quechua (Bolivia)
Marco Aurelio Prado – Federal University (Brazil)
Cesar Gamboa – DAR (Peru)
Martha Torres – DAR (Peru)
Mariana Gonzales – FUNDAR (México)
Vanessa Torres -Ambiente y Sociedad (Colombia)
Korinna Horta – Urgewald (Germany)
Christina Beberdick – Urgewald (Germany)
Knud Voecking – Urgewald (Germany)
Bimbo Oshobe – Justice & Empowerment Initiatives (Nigeria)
Jackson Shaa – Narasha Community Development Group (Kenya)
Déborah Sánchez – MASTA (Honduras)
Miskitu Asla Takanka – MASTA (Honduras)
Patrick Kipalu – Forest Peoples Program (DRC)
Ane Schjolden – Rainforest Foundation Norway (Norway)

Gallery

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Video

What Does Shrinking Space for Civil Society Mean for the Twin Goals?

Bank Information Center organized a session with Human Rights Watch, Oxfam, World Movement for Democracy, International Accountability Project, and Coalition for Human Rights in Development at the World Bank Spring Meetings Civil Society Policy Forum titled “What Does Shrinking Space for Civil Society Mean for the Twin Goals?”. This session drew upon examples of restrictions on citizen voice from Egypt, Azerbaijan, and Kenya and discusses implications of restricted civil society space for the World Bank’s development goals.

Forests at the World Bank Group in a Post-Paris Agreement World

Conservation International & BIC hosted a panel event at the Civil Society Policy Forum of the World Bank 2016 Spring Meetings on the Bank’s role in supporting forest commitments coming out of COP21. The panel includes Bank staff working on forests and climate change; CSO partners from FPP, WRI, CI, and Honduran indigenous organization MASTA; and a Norwegian government representative from NICFI.