Advocating for responsible policies of development banks
Development banks should comply with strict environmental and human rights rules to ensure that their projects benefit and do not harm the poorest groups. Both ENDS monitors the banks to make sure they do.
Multilateral and national development banks play an important role in many development projects. Both ENDS follows the policies of these banks and the projects they finance very closely as they use a lot of public money that is explicitly intended to promote development. In addition, they often invest in the least developed and fragile countries that private investors shy away from. That means that development banks can potentially have a positive impact in these countries. However, failing policies and lax compliance with their own rules frequently mean that their projects have a negative impact on the very people that these projects are designed to help.
Both ENDS and the development banks
Both ENDS focuses mainly on the banks that have the greatest impact in least developed countries and in which the Netherlands has a financial interest and influence. These are:
- FMO: 51% of the shares of Dutch development bank FMO are owned by the Dutch state. It is one of the largest bilateral development banks in the world.
- The World Bank: the first multilateral development bank, with extensive local impact and a trendsetter in sustainability policy. The Netherlands can exert its influence at the Bank through its constituency.
- The Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB): a new multilateral development bank set up in 2016 to counterbalance the World Bank. The largest shareholders are China, Russia and India. Like other European countries, the Netherlands also has shares in the AIIB. This new bank presents opportunities to promote sustainability, but China's dominance presents a lot of risks.
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB): grants loans to governments in developing countries. The Netherlands is one of the 67 members.
- The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD): the Netherlands is a shareholder in both of these European development banks.
- Other regional development banks, such as the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB; Latin America): because the Netherlands has little influence within these banks, we focus mainly on strengthening regional networks and local partners who work to improve the social and environmental policies of these banks.
Development banks' social and environmental standards
Development banks should set an example in setting up and applying strict social, environmental and human rights standards. They also closely monitor each others' activities and developments in relation to sustainability and human rights. Many of them adhere to the IFC Performance Standards, developed by the International Finance Corporation, the private sector branch of the World Bank Group.
However, the banks increasingly attract private capital to enable them to make large-scale investments. That results in more and more public-private partnerships. The banks also have to compete with increasing capital flows from other sources, like China. That exerts greater pressure to relax the current standards to make investments quicker and easier. Moreover, the banks' standards are by no means always adhered to in practice. That is why we, together with partners throughout the world, try to persuade public financial institutions to tighten up their rules and actually put them into practice.
Besides strict standards, transparency and independent complaints mechanisms are important to identify abuses and enforce structural improvements.
International networks relating to development banks
We do not call for reforms in development financing alone, but as much as possible together with a wide range of other organisations. Both ENDS is therefore active in many networks of civil society organisations, including the Euro-IFI Network of European NGOs which monitors the policy of the World Bank Group, and the NGO Forum on the ADB, which does the same for the Asian development banks ADB and AIIB. In relation to the European banks, Both ENDS works closely with CEE-Bankwatch and Counterbalance.
Both ENDS was also actively involved in setting up and strengthening the CSO Coalition on the AfDB, a network of organisations that examines the effects of the investment policy of the African Development Bank and makes suggestions for improvement.
In addition, Both ENDs works together with local organisations that resist projects funded by development banks. By bringing our local partners into contact with the banks and supporting them in submitting complaints, we can either show the banks that their rules need to be tightened up, or that their policies, which look so good on paper, do not always turn out that well in practice.
Towards more social and sustainable policies by development banks
At FMO, our efforts have been successful. As a result of the problems surrounding the Barro Blanco dam project in Panama, the Dutch development bank has set up a complaints mechanism. And, after our intensive efforts to bring about structural changes after the murder of Berta Cáceres in the context of the Agua Zarca project in Honduras, FMO has tightened up its environmental, human rights and gender policy. We continue to monitor whether this policy is indeed complied with.
In the case of other banks, such as the ADB, we have been able to stop standards from being reviewed, and thus most likely degraded, for many years. Persistent pressure from various groups from civil society is also slowly generating greater transparency and participation at the banks. A good example is the large-scale consultation process on the World Bank's Environmental and Social Safeguards. New banks like the AIIB are also setting up complaints procedures and the EIB is reforming its own mechanism.
Locally, our work is creating greater knowledge and awareness among civil society organisations on the impact of development banks on their living environment and, together with our partners, we are ensuring that the voices of local communities and organisations are increasingly being heard by policy-makers at the banks.
For more information
Read more about this subject
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Dossier
Agua Zarca: indigenous fight against dam costs lives
Indigenous Hondurans are resisting the construction of the Agua Zarca hydrodam. Their fight has cost several lives, including that of Berta Cáceres. After considerable public pressure, Dutch development bank FMO withdrew from the project.
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Dossier
Large-scale infrastructure
Large-scale infrastructural projects have detrimental effects on local people and the environment, while their benefits are felt elsewhere. Both ENDS is working to ensure that local people have a greater say in decision-making and is investigating the way these projects are funded.
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Dossier
Fair Green and Global Alliance (FGG)
Together with civil society organisations from all over the world, the Fair Green and Global (FGG) Alliance aims for socially just, inclusive and environmentally sustainable societies in the Netherlands and the Global South.
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Dossier
Indigenous communities threatened by Barro Blanco dam in Panama
The Barro Blanco dam project in Panama, which has Dutch financial support, is causing indigenous lands to disappear under water. Both ENDS is working to protect the rights of indigenous communities living near the dam.
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News / 10 November 2020
FMO takes a step towards divesting from fossil fuels
The Dutch development bank FMO has published a statement about fossil fuels to take steps in climate action. Both ENDS and partners are pleased that FMO is finally taking a stand regarding fossil fuels, but in our opinion it could be more ambitious. In order to really contribute to sustainability and equality, it is essential that development banks stop investing in harmful fossil projects.
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News / 18 November 2019
European Investment Bank goes fossilfree
Good news for the climate: last week, the European Investment Bank (EIB) decided to stop investing in fossil fuels by 2021. This is part of its new energy strategy.
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News / 8 November 2019
European Commission, help the European Investment Bank go Fossil Free!
On Thursday November 7th, a group of European NGO's including Both ENDS, sent a letter to Vice-President of the EU Frans Timmermans, in which they ask him to support the phase out of European Investment Bank’s fossil fuel financing by the end of 2020.
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News / 5 November 2019
Guatemalan women force Development Bank to investigate gender policy violations
After a complaint filed by women's groups from Ixquisis, Guatemala, the Interamerican Development Bank (IDB) has started an investigation on several policy violations, amongst which the Gender Equality policy. This is a unique chance to create a precedent, because complaints on the IDB's gender policy are very rare. The women from Ixquisis are fighting for their rights with support of the Global Alliance for Green and Gender Action (GAGGA).
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News / 30 July 2019
EIB wants to stop fossil investments: big step in the right direction
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has published its new policy for energy investments. In the new draft policy, the bank states to stop investing in fossil fuel related projects from 2020. This is good news for the climate, so Both ENDS and partners are happy with this draft policy. The shareholders of the bank, the member states of the European Union, still have to approve it.
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Blog / 12 July 2019
Dutch participation in the AIIB, an international bank with Chinese characteristics
and Stijn Deklerck of Amnesty International Nederland
On 12 and 13 July, the Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB) will be holding its annual meeting in Luxembourg. This is the fourth annual meeting of the AIIB which was set up on the initiative of China. As a shareholder, the Netherlands will be attending the meeting.
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Blog / 24 June 2019
The European Investment Bank should withdraw from gas investments
The European Investment Bank EIB should get rid of its gas-investments, and the Netherlands can take the lead in this. The Netherlands appears to be relying less and less on gas in its energy policy, and also seems to focus on gas-free investments at the EIB. Now it is important to maintain this position and also convince the other EU countries.
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External link / 10 December 2018
Human Rights Defenders are a Cornerstone of Sustainable Development
An Open Letter to States and Development Financiers on the need to ensure that development interventions support the realization of human rights, safeguard human rights defenders and guarantee meaningful public participation
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Publication / 10 December 2018
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News / 1 December 2018
7 suspects of the murder of the Honduran Berta Cáceres were found guilty
On Thursday, November 29, seven suspects of the murder of Berta Cáceres (in March 2016) were found guilty. Members of the indigenous human rights organisation COPINH, of which Cáceres was the leader, and close relatives of Cáceres herself see the ruling as the first step towards justice for her murder and the recognition that the company DESA is co-responsible for this. They also point out, however, that the process was permeated with corruption, intimidation and other abuses from the very beginning, and that the masterminds behind the murder are still walking around freely.
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Blog / 13 November 2018
The "Dutch hero" came to develop "poor Africa"
Last weekend there was an article in Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant about the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya. I was surprised and angry about how the story was presented. How can people be so blind to the perspectives of others? And how can a progressive paper like De Volkskrant devote so much space to such an unnuanced account? This is exactly why such projects lead to conflicts.
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News / 7 August 2018
Indigenous women fight dams in Guatemala
Communities from Northern Guatemala have filed a complaint this week against the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). They bear the brunt of the construction of two large hydropower dams in the Ixquisis region, that are co-financed by the IDB. This is against the bank's own policies on environment and sustainability, indigenous people, gender, and information disclosure.
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External link / 31 May 2018
Agua Zarca debacle leads to policy changes at FMO (Annual Report 2017)
Sometimes things must go terribly wrong before big players start to move. In March 2016, Honduran activist Berta Cáceres was murdered because of her leading role in the protests against the Agua Zarca hydro dam, co-financed by the Dutch FMO. One and a half year later, FMO changed their policies to prevent such events in the future.
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News / 23 May 2018
African civil society urges AfDB to support sustainable, inclusive and people-centred development
This week, the African Development Bank (AfDB) holds its 2018 Annual Meetings. A large group of African civil society organisations calls on the bank to ensure social and environmental protection, to involve civil society, to pay attention to gender issues and to make sustainable choices in their energy access ambitions.
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News / 17 May 2018
Charge against Dutch FMO for complicity in human rights violations in Honduras
Today, three representatives of the Honduran indigenous people's organisation COPINH, together with the family of environmental activist Berta Cáceres, who was murdered in March 2016, announced that they are preparing to press charges against the Dutch development bank FMO. COPINH accuses the FMO of complicity in human rights violations in connection with the controversial Agua Zarca hydroelectric project.
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News / 4 October 2017
Reaction to FMOs position statements on human rights, land and gender
On September 20th FMO published its new position statements on human rights, land governance and gender. We appreciate that FMO takes human rights serious and applaud the efforts that have been made to come to an improved position on human rights, land and gender. However, to truly have a positive impact on people and the environment, some important follow up steps are necessary.