Representatives of civil society, indigenous communities, government and the press gathered in San Pedro Sula, Honduras from Sept. 23 to Sept. 25 for the “First International Workshop on Social and Environmental Safeguards in Indigenous Territories and Forest Communities of Mesoamerica,” an initiative of the Bank Information Center, and for the Community Forestry Pre-Congress, organized by …
Between August 14 and October 5 2013 the Bank Information Center held a series of seven children’s consultations in six countries on the World Bank safeguards. The countries in which consultations have been carried out include: Peru, Yemen, India, Cambodia and Uganda. The World Bank is currently reviewing its social and environmental policy standards, and is …
Image: A visually impaired respondent raises concerns during FGD at pawel parish in Patiko Sub County, Gulu district, Uganda The Disability and World Bank Safeguards Campaign, a partnership between the Bank Information Center and the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union, submitted revised World Bank Environmental Assessment Policy (OP 4.01), Indigenous Peoples Policy (OP 4.10), and Involuntary Resettlement …
The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility’s Carbon Fund held back-to-back meetings of the Working Group on the Methodological Framework (MF), and the Carbon Fund in Paris, June 20-24, 2013. Despite plans to finalize a draft of the MF to circulate for public comment by the end of the CF7, the failure to meet this goal signifies …
Mexican civil society and indigenous representatives convened on June 24th and 25th in Mexico City for a workshop entitled “Towards the Construction and Articulation of Knowledge in the Process of Shaping REDD+”. With the goal of creating a new space for dialogue and shared learning around REDD, regional representatives from the Yucatan Peninsula, Central Mexico, and Northern …
As the consultation period of the first phase of the World Bank safeguard policy review and update concluded at the end of April, two coalitions of civil society organizations submitted comments on Forests and Natural Habitats Operational Policies The two CSO submissions outlined opportunities, concerns, and recommendations for the revision of Forests and Natural Habitats …
Map showing World Bank financed activities in Tunisia. Source: World Bank The Bank Information Center (BIC)’s Middle East and North Africa (MENA) program publishes a study on the role of the World Bank Group in Tunisia historically and during the current transitional period. In addition to highlighting the main development challenges affecting the country, …
During the Safeguards Regional Consultations held in Lima (February), Buenos Aires (March) and Ciudad de Guatemala (April) several Latin American CSOs including indigenous organizations submitted a letter to their World Bank Executive Directors: Cesar Guido Forcieri, Executive Director for: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Roberto Tan, Executive Director for: Philippines, Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Juan Jose Bravo Moises, Executive Director for: Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Spain, Republica Bolivariana de Venezuela with their position statement regarding the review process of the Bank’s policies.
A group of Egyptian civil society organizations have submitted their recommendations to the World Bank as input to Phase 1 of the Social and Environmental Safeguard policy review process. The document was endorsed by many of the same organizations that pushed the Bank to hold a civil society consultation in Cairo since such a meeting …
The Bank Information Center submitted a case study to the World Bank’s Safeguards review team regarding the need for Child Impact Assessments as demonstrated by the lack of due diligence around the Rural Enterprise Support Project-II loan to Uzbekistan.