World Bank Calibrating its Measurement of Sustainability

Emilio Godoy * - Tierramérica Source: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=55798

MEXICO CITY, May 26 (IPS) - The World Bank is working to update the
mechanisms it uses to measure the effects of the financing it provides,
particularly in environmental and social terms, now that it is gearing up
to administer the new Green Climate Fund.

"The Bank is working to deepen the measurement of impacts," not only "the
outcomes associated with a project, but also its long-term effects, such as
impacts on health, ecosystems or the quality of life of the population," Gustavo
Saltiel, the director of sustainable development for the World Bank in Mexico,
told Tierramérica.

The World Bank is one of the leading financers of environmental projects in

Mexico, as well as projects to combat climate change since 2009.

Since 1999, the multilateral institution has disbursed 672 million dollars in loans
for 43 projects in Mexico aimed at developing the low-carbon economy, energy
efficiency, renewable energies, sustainable transportation, and improved air
quality.

But the results of these projects and the transparency with which these funds are
used by the Mexican authorities have been questioned by civil society
organisations.

The World Bank has established safeguard policies to "promote socially and
environmentally sustainable approaches to development as well as to ensure
that Bank operations do not harm people and the environment," according to its
website.

These safeguard policies include the Bank's policy on environmental assessment

of loan proposals and the corresponding safeguards regarding cultural property,
disputed areas, forestry, indigenous peoples, international waterways,
involuntary resettlement, natural habitats, pest management and safety of
dams.

Evaluations of these policies "have demonstrated the poor work done (by the
Bank) in monitoring the execution of measures to mitigate social and
environmental risks," Vince McElhinny of the non-governmental Bank Information
Center, based in Washington, told Tierramérica.

McElhinny was referring to an assessment by the Bank’s Independent Evaluation

Group of the performance of the International Finance Corporation, the arm of
the World Bank responsible for financing private sector projects.

The report "Assessing International Finance Corporation Poverty Focus and

Results", released on May 3, found that less than half of the projects evaluated
included evidence of poverty and distributional aspects in project design,
consideration of the characteristics of intended beneficiaries, or mechanisms to
track impact.

The Independent Evaluation Group, established by the World Bank itself to

assess its operations, stated in its recommendations that "the greater the
number of poverty characteristics a project addresses, the greater the likelihood
is of achieving positive outcomes."

Commenting on the report, Adriana Gómez, communications coordinator for the

International Finance Corporation, recognised that "we haven’t been consistent
in establishing in advance the expected impact of our projects on poverty
reduction."

"From now on, it will be fundamental for the Corporation to better articulate the
dimensions related to the poverty reduction impact of its projects. The
Corporation is working towards the development of goals for social impact and
access to services in sectors such as health and climate change," she noted.

connection with the goals set. "In general, this system makes it possible to
evaluate progress, and in cases where it is deemed that a goal has not been
met, corrective mechanisms are discussed with the counterparts in the
corresponding government," explained Saltiel.

McElhinny believes the bank will "increasingly depend on the countries’ own
systems for monitoring and evaluating investments."

"There is no way to know whether or not this process will strengthen the Bank’s
reputation with regard to results. But if the safeguards are weakened and this is
not compensated by strengthened capacity on the part of the beneficiary
countries, the result could be decreased accountability," he added. .

One key aspect will be addressed this year through a process focused on the
energy sector.

As part of the World Bank reform process, the Board of Executive Directors must
discuss and publish the final version of its new energy sector strategy, which was
submitted to public consultation in 2010.

Thirteen non-governmental organisations in the Americas recommended

including the rights of indigenous communities and placing emphasis on clean
and renewable energies and procedures to guarantee transparency in the
design, execution and evaluation of projects.

"The members of the Board of Executive Directors Committee on Development

Effectiveness agreed on the need for more time to review the document in
detail," World Bank spokesman Roger Morier told Tierramérica. This has led to
postponing the release of the energy policy, a key document given its links to
climate change.
At the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 16), held in Mexico in December
2010, an agreement was reached to establish a Green Climate Fund, with a
commitment from rich countries to deliver 30 billion dollars in financing by 2012
and 100 billion annually by 2020.

The money will be allocated to poor countries to help them adapt to the impacts
of climate change and develop low-carbon economies. The World Bank will
administer the Fund for the first three years in accordance with the standards of
the Convention.

The Transitional Committee tasked with designing the Green Climate Fund -
made up of 15 members from developed countries and 25 from developing
countries - established its general working arrangements and a work plan at its
first meeting in late April.

*This story was originally published by Latin American newspapers that are part
of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced
by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme, United
Nations Environment Programme and the World Bank. (END/2011)

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