Human Rights and Multilateral Development Banks

It’s been two years since the Executive Board of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) pledged to review and update its Indigenous Peoples Policy – part of the response to the Center’s complaint against the IDB-financed Mareña Renovables Wind Project in Oaxaca, Mexico. The project had drawn intense opposition from indigenous communities that feared the wind turbines and infrastructure would interfere with their cultural traditions, including limiting access to their sacred sites and damaging the fishery – their principal source of food and income. The IDB’s Directors have acknowledged that for the bank to work more effectively, it must ensure the "institutional and regulatory framework of projects involving indigenous communities be based on international best practices." The IDB’s current Indigenous Peoples Policy dates back to 2006. Since then, both the United Nations and the Organization of American States have both adopted declarations on the rights of indigenous peoples. The Center and many major indigenous organizations in Mexico and Central and South America are pushing the IDB to review and update its Indigenous Peoples Policy in consultation with indigenous peoples. We are bringing the IDB’s attention to the policy’s main shortcomings with respect to the legal standards set by the declarations

September 2016

Attorney Leonardo Crippa delivers a statement to the UN Human Rights Council during the Council’s discussion on the right to development.

A wind farm company, partially funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), has decided to relocate its project that would have negatively impacted seven indigenous communities in Oaxaca, Mexico. 

The decision comes after an IDB review panel agreed to investigate a claim filed by the Center that the land rights of seven communities were being violated by the project.

Op-Ed by Armstrong A. Wiggins

Ending poverty globally can only be accomplished if you are in conversation with the people who live in poverty.

On October 9, the Center hosted a panel discussion to highlight Indigenous Peoples’ land rights and the impacts of development activities financed by the World Bank. The event, “Indigenous Peoples’ Lands and Development: World Bank Interventions and Lessons Learned”, was held at the World Bank headquarters in Washington, DC.

A massive wind farm project, partially funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), is under investigation by the IDB’s Panel of Investigators for negatively impacting seven indigenous communities in Oaxaca, Mexico. The Center is providing legal assistance to the communities to ensure that there is an independent investigation of the project and that their concerns are properly addressed by the IDB’s Board of Directors.

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The World Bank held two critical meetings in Manila, Philippines, last month as part of its safeguard policies review process and its overall engagement with indigenous peoples. Center Senior Attorney Leonardo Crippa was invited to participate in the meetings as an expert on indigenous rights.

On November 15, the World Bank held its first consultation with civil society organizations as part of a two-year process to review and update its social and environmental policies. The Center participated in the consultation to advocate for stronger protections for indigenous peoples and to urge the Bank to ensure that the experiences and recommendations of indigenous peoples are able to play a leading role in shaping any new policy framework.

Securing an approach to development which respects the rights and protects the livelihoods of the world’s indigenous peoples is one of the Center’s core goals. In March, Washington Office Director Armstrong Wiggins and staff members Gretchen Gordon and Karla General joined with indigenous peoples’ organizations at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) to advocate for indigenous rights protections.

The Center has filed additional comments related to REDD+ in our continued efforts to raise awareness of the importance of indigenous peoples’ rights in all efforts to combat climate change. We submitted comments to the UN-REDD Programme on two draft policies: the Draft Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) Guidelines and the Draft Principles and Criteria and Benefit and Risk Assessment Tool.

Along the banks of the Utuquinia River in Peru sits the Flor de Ucayali Community. The only way in and out of this 20 family settlement is by boat. Debora Bardoles Guimaraes, member of the Flor de Ucayali Community: "For the moment we are in tranquility in our community, we are organized."

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is the private sector lending arm of the World Bank.  It has some of the greatest impacts on indigenous communities around the world because it funds numerous multi-national companies and private actors.  The IFC is reviewing its processes in regards to Sustainability Framework, including the Policy on Social and Environmental Sustainability, Performance Standards, and the Policy of Disclosure of Information.