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Last week the Agricultural Investment Summit took place in London, seeking to promote land as an emerging and expanding investment opportunity. Civil society organisations are concerned that this could lead to further land grabbing, threatening the livelihoods and food security of countless local communities in the global South. In a joint civil society statement Both ENDS urges pension funds and other financial institutions to stop such damaging investment practices.

“Quite shocking”, said Anouk Franck from Both ENDS. “The International Finance Corporation is unaware of the social and environmental consequences of their investments in private enterprises in developing countries and emerging economies. This was observed by the Ombudsman of the IFC itself.”

In March the Indonesian government announced that it will terminate the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) with the Netherlands as of July 1st, 2015 (for more information, see the press release of 24 March at the bottom of this post). Several organizations, including Both ENDS, have been raising questions about these controversial international trade agreements for a long time and think they should be drastically revised or even terminated. The Socialist Party and GreenLeft have asked parliamentary questions about the effects of these treaties following Indonesia’s decision. Both ENDS is curious about the answers to these parliamentary questions and about the consequences they will have for Dutch policy in this area.

Last week, the Alternative Trade Mandate (ATM) was officially launched in Brussels. The ATM is an alliance of over 50 organisations from across Europe, reacting to the current European trade and investment policies. As the name suggests, the ATM comes up with an alternative: fairer and more sustainable trade policies that truly respect people, the environment and democracy. Trade policies that take into account the interests of all stakeholders, including trade unions, farmers, activists in the field of environment and/or human rights, and networks that are committed to fair trade. In the run-up to the European elections an active European campaign will bring the Alternative Trade Mandate to the attention of organisations, the public and parliamentarians. SOMO, TNI and Both ENDS, united in the ‘Fair Green and Global Alliance,’ are joining the campaign in the Netherlands.

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.