Workshop report on “The Future Development Finance and Accountability Landscape” available online

On 21-22 April 2016 a brainstorming workshop on “The Future Development Finance and Accountability Landscape” was organized by Natural Justice, Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights, Center of Concern, the Heinrich Böll Foundation, and Inclusive Development International, with the support of the 11th Hour Project. The aim of the workshop was to bring together experts in finance, development finance, infrastructure development, and human rights to build an understanding of the current and future infrastructure financing system and develop a plan for where to focus efforts in order to ensure that financers of infrastructure are accountable to international human rights standards.

The workshop served as an opportunity for people from many different backgrounds – private finance, pension funds, the UN, civil society, academics, and others – to sit together and share information and experiences on financing infrastructure. One of the key take aways from the workshop was that while so called “downstream” accountability (e.g. remedies after harm has occurred) is critical, building more accountability at the “upstream” (e.g. project design, procurement) level is equally important. Unless human rights impacts are taken into account in project design and financing, communities will always be playing catch up during implementation.

The workshop report can be found here.

Natural Justice Co-Hosts Brainstorming Workshop on “The Future Development Finance and Accountability Landscape”

With the world on the brink of the biggest infrastructure boom in history, infrastructure project funding is increasingly slated for the Global South. Here the projects are often located in environmentally and socially sensitive areas, including on lands inhabited by indigenous peoples and other vulnerable groups. While these projects can have great benefits, they can equally constitute serious threats to already marginalized groups. At the same time, the models for financing new infrastructure are growing increasingly complex, with the creation of new institutions such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Global Infrastructure Facility, and a call for growing private sector involvement. 

Against this backdrop, Natural Justice, Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights, Center of Concern, the Heinrich Böll Foundation, and Inclusive Development International, with the support of the 11th Hour Project, co-organized a brainstorming workshop to bring together experts in finance, development finance, infrastructure development, and human rights. The workshop took place over two days (21-22 April 2016) at Columbia University. The purpose of the workshop was to build an understanding of the current system and projected future financial models and develop a plan for where to focus efforts in order to ensure that financers of infrastructure are accountable to international human rights standards.

The workshop served as an opportunity for people from many different backgrounds – private finance, pension funds, the UN, civil society, academics, and others – to sit together and share information and experiences on financing infrastructure. It was clear from the workshop that while so called “downstream” accountability (e.g. remedies after harm has occurred) is critical, building more accountability at the “upstream” (e.g. project design, procurement) level is equally important. Unless human rights impacts are taken into account in project design and financing, communities will always be playing catch up during implementation.

Glass Half Full? New Report Finds Development Banks Can Do More To Protect Communities' Rights

Development finance institutions (DFIs) that operate on global and regional levels play a significant role in protecting the human rights of indigenous peoples and local communities. That is due in large part to the fact that DFIs finance infrastructure, extractive, and other development projects that can have major impacts on communities. Financing of development in this context can be viewed as three sides of a triangle made up of (1) the DFI that supplies the financing for a project, (2) the borrowing client that implements the project, and (3) the independent accountability mechanism (IAM) of the DFI that exists to hear complaints related to the impacts caused by the project. How well are DFIs playing their role?

'Glass Half Full?: The State of Accountability in Development Finance' is a new report written by 11 organizations, including Natural Justice, that aims to answer that question. Using the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights as a framework, the report finds that even though complainants are undoubtedly better off than they would be in the absence of any complaint procedure, the outcome rarely provides adequate remedy for the harm caused by development projects.

This is the result of several factors, including the DFIs themselves, who undermine the effectiveness of the IAMs by failing to require their clients to disclose the IAM's existence to project-affected people and limiting the IAMs' mandates by stopping short of allowing them to issue binding decisions. Rather, the outcome depends either on the willingness of the DFI's client to resolve the conflict through dialogue or the DFI's own willingness to address the violations found through an IAM investigation. The report concludes with two sets of recommendations. The first set seeks to improve the current system by identifying best practices that should be adopted by all IAMs and DFIs. The report determines, however, that simply adopting best practices will not be enough to ensure that complainants receive remedy for the harms that have occurred. Rather, a new accountability system must be established as a matter of urgency with mechanisms that are empowered to make binding decisions and DFIs that no longer claim immunity in national courts.

To read the complete report visit: http://grievancemechanisms.org/resources/brochures/glass-half-full

Ensuring Climate Finance Effectiveness in Africa

Kulthoum Omari, Heinrich Boell Foundation

From 21-23 May, Cath Traynor (Natural Justice Associate) participated in the “Ensuring Climate Finance Effectiveness in Africa” workshop in Magaliesburg, South Africa, organised by the Heinrich Boell Foundation, Pan African Justice Alliance, and Transparency International Kenya. The workshop provided a platform for civil society actors and other stakeholders in the region to share experiences, strategies and tools and improved the capacity of participants to play a more active role in the governance of climate finance on the African continent.

Participants discussed the importance of civil society influencing effective policy development, and exerting their watchdog role in the monitoring and implementation of climate finance. Experiences of monitoring national climate finance governance were shared from Kenya, Senegal and Zambia, amongst others. Relevant tools for capacity building and mechanisms for monitoring and oversight were discussed. Key issues raised included:

• Applying lessons learned from finance monitoring in similar spheres, for example, Overseas Development Aid;
• Opportunities for civil society organisations to influence climate finance have increased in recent years, however, advocacy is required to enhance and broaden these spaces and create new ones;