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Despite the promise of a new era of collaborative development, the premise of Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives actually bringing communities to the table for cooperative dialogue has remained questionable. As the UNDP looks to implement certifiable standards for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in the impact investing field, will it heed the call for greater stakeholder engagement and much needed accountability?  

Development institutions aim to finance projects that will lift vulnerable communities out of poverty. However, if not designed, implemented, or monitored properly, these projects can instead result in harm to communities and not achieve their development goals. This month, Accountability Counsel, Friends of the Earth, and several international partners submitted comments on the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation’s (DFC) new system of measuring development impacts – the Impact Quotient.

Yesterday, Accountability Counsel and 40 global partners submitted a joint letter to the Executive Directors of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), requesting the immediate disclosure of the long-awaited report of the external review of the IFC and MIGA’s accountability framework and for a subsequent…

We are delighted to announce three talented women joining Accountability Counsel’s Board of Directors in 2020: Caroline Bressan, Niranjali Amerasinghe, and Carolyn Rashby. Caroline, Niranjali, and Carolyn bring a diverse range of skills and talents, with expertise ranging from advocacy around equity, climate finance, and human rights, to philanthropic experience…

In her analysis of the latest report from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Accountability and Remedy project, AC policy fellow Shelby McGuire-Smith highlights the need for dedicated funds to resource remedial actions to address harm to communities affected by internationally finance projects.

Sarah Singh is leaving Accountability Counsel after over eight years at the organization. A brilliant advocate with a deep commitment to supporting communities to protect their human rights and environment, we honor her many accomplishments and contributions to Accountability Counsel, our clients, and our field.

Renewable technologies and green investments are critical to achieving carbon neutrality, but the vital climate benefits of these projects do not mean they are without social and environmental risk. The Business and Human Rights Resource Centre recently published the first Renewable Energy and Human Rights Benchmark, which assesses the policies…

Three years after signing historic agreements with Rio Tinto-backed Oyu Tolgoi (OT) mine and the local government to address impacts of OT’s massive mine on their traditional way of life, herders are still waiting for some of the most important promises to be implemented. As Accountability Counsel’s latest interactive progress report shows, with many commitments still pending, herders’ ability to continue their traditional livelihoods hangs in the balance.

Speaking at the 2020 OECD Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct, Accountability Counsel’s Stephanie Amoako discussed the changes needed to effectively provide remedy to communities harmed by corporate activity or international investments.

Development institutions should pay close attention to the effects and lessons from Kenya’s current COVID response to make sure that the support they provide helps build resilience to this and future crises, and does not worsen the situation for communities who are already disproportionately harmed.

Our team is committed to anti-racist organizing as part of our work for accountability and systems change.

DAWEI, 22 May 2020 – Today, an alliance of Karen community groups calls on their government and the international community to abandon a destructive, top-down conservation project that threatens their environment and way of life. They offer an alternative in its place – an indigenous-led conservation plan, called Landscape of…

Investors of all kinds  are providing unprecedented levels of financing in response to COVID-19. Given the sheer scope and impact of the crisis, it is vital that this monetary response reaches those who need it most.  Unfortunately, not all financial institutions and investors responding to the crisis are equipped with the tools needed to receive community feedback and address problems when they arise. This accountability gap risks undermining the effectiveness of the COVID-19 response.

The World Bank Group recently agreed to reforms to improve its accountability, transparency, respect for human rights, and environmental, social, and governance risk management. These wide-ranging commitments are the result of successful negotiations with the U.S. House Financial Services Committee to include a $5.5 billion capital increase for the WBG’s private sector arm, the International Finance Corporation, in COVID-19 stimulus legislation.

While no other method can be nearly as effective as in-person engagement, innovative community engagement tools may hold answers for how to conduct sufficient consultations during a pandemic without putting lives at risk.

The need for financial support during this crisis is both immense and acute, and without a doubt, MDBs should rise to the challenge. The urgency of this moment means that every dollar of financing needs to deliver its intended impact; there is no room for unintended consequences.

After nearly two years of deliberating internally, the World Bank Group (WBG) Board of Directors has approved significant changes to its accountability framework for public-sector lending. To date, limited information about the details of these changes has been publicly shared, leaving considerable ambiguity about how they will be operationalized. Drawing…

On March 5, 2020, the World Bank Group Board of Directors approved significant changes to the accountability framework for public-sector lending, including the creation of an entirely new accountability office called the World Bank Accountability Mechanism.

In the wake of a scandal revealing the World Bank may have suppressed knowledge of money for the poor being siphoned off by elites, all eyes are on the Bank to see whether its commitments to the poor hold water. Now, the Bank has a chance to demonstrate its commitment to vulnerable communities––and not the wealthy few––by righting its wrongs in a massive water scheme the Bank is financing in rural India.

Where international investment from powerful actors uses natural resources like water or land that sustain life for local people, conflict is a predictable result. We have seen those conflicts near a breaking point, but we have also seen firsthand how communities, companies, governments and institutions can build interpersonal relationships, trust, and overcome seemingly insurmountable barriers to come to agreement on a peaceful path forward.