Archived press release

World Bank Meeting Protest

21 April 2004

Campaigners Mark 60^th Anniversary of International Monetary Fund and World Bank

Hundreds of people from across the globe will gather in Washington on Saturday 24^rd April to demonstrate outside the 60^th anniversary meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The protest by human rights groups, environmental charities and indigenous peoples from Latin America, South East Asia and Africa, is against the misuse of public money by both international financial institutions through their investment in projects that cause climate change, damage the environment and lead to human rights abuses, while failing to tackle poverty.

The meetings are also an opportunity for the World Bank to sign up to the recommendations of its own Extractive Industries Review that include ending support for all oil industries within five years, increasing regulation of its links to companies extracting natural resources, and more support for renewable energy.

Politicians and religious leaders - including the European Parliament and Desmond Tutu - have already called on the World Bank to put its new recommendations in place.

Friends of the Earth International Finance Institutions Campaigner, Hannah Ellis said:

"The World Bank gives millions of pounds of taxpayers to multinational companies like Shell for projects which lead to climate-change, damage the environment and lead to human rights abuses. Today's meeting is a chance for the World Bank to really make a positive difference to people's lives and their environment by putting in place its own recommendations from its Extractive Industries Review."

Representatives from Friends of the Earth in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, El Salvador, Ecuador, France, Nigeria, the Netherlands, Canada, Ghana and America are taking part in the demonstration.

The World Bank and the IMF hold significant power over the economies of developing countries and are controlled by wealthy countries - including the UK and the US. They have been severely criticised for using public money to invest in environmentally damaging projects including the Baku-Ceyhan gas pipeline crossing Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey and financing multinational corporations like Shell and BP.

Notes

The World Bank Group was created in 1944 to make loans and guarantee credit to its 184 member countries. It finances projects such as roads, power plants and other infrastructure projects and makes loans to restructure countries' economic systems.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was formed in 1944 to monitor national economies and make cash or credit available to member states experiencing short-term balance of payments difficulties. Since the late 1970s it has claimed to `assist' countries with programmes such as structural adjustment.

Voting power at the World Bank and IMF is determined by the level of a nation's financial contribution - America has up to 18% of the vote on each board, with the seven largest industrialized countries (including the United Kingdom) holding about 45%. This contrasts with the UN General Assembly where each member nation has an equal vote,

The US, along with eight other countries each have a individual representative (Executive Director) while sub-Saharan Africa only has two has two directors, each representing 23 countries. Together the two African directors votes count for less than 5% of the total.

The Extractive Industries Review

Commissioned by World Bank President Wolfensohn in 2000 and finalized in December 2003 - recommendations include:

• Phase-out support for oil by 2008 and formalize moratorium on coal financing.

• Where weak, strengthen governance prior to extractive industry investment

• Help client countries assess the potential benefits of extractive industries compared to alternative development options.

• Ensure local communities receive a fair share of the revenues.

• Ensure borrowers and clients obtain the consent of indigenous people and local communities directly affected by extractive industry projects.

• No support for extractive industries in conflict areas.

• Respect human rights

• Increase support of renewable energy lending by 20% annually

• Ban financing extractive industries in protected areas as defined by UN Natural Habitats Policy, or as designated by national or local governments

• Produce a benefit analysis for all projects

• Establish an information ombudsman to oversee application of the disclosure policy

The European Parliament passed a resolution (April 2004) endorsing the review and Desmond Tutu has written to Wolfensohn asking for full implementation of the review

Several banks, including Barclays and HSBC, have made commitments to `sustainable development' by signing the Equator Principles Declaration to adhere to World Bank Policy in their lending activities. See www.equator-principles.com/. However, a recent letter leaked to press www.foe.org/new/releases/404eirpr.html from the Banks to Wolfensohn implies a hidden agenda.

More information from Hands off! Why International Financial Institutions Must stop drilling, piping and mining, friends of the earth international available at www.foei.org/publications/financial/index.html

The Baku-Ceyhan Pipeline is a 1,750 kilometre long oil and gas pipeline crossing Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. For more information see www.bakuceyhan.org.uk/

For more information on the EIR see www.eireview.org

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust