European Development Bank Looks to Help North Africa
New York Times | May 20, 2011FRANKFURT — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, long focused on promoting democracy in central Europe and the former Soviet Union through loans to business, is likely to extend its mandate to North Africa as part of a broader push by Europe and the United States to help countries in the region.
Assessing the EBRD 20 years on
Environmental Finance | May 12, 2011The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has an explicit environmental mandate. But, 20 years after its creation, how is it doing? There’
EU project bonds: More smoke and mirrors at taxpayer’s expense
EurActiv | May 5, 2011European Commission proposals to introduce project bonds are beset by deficiencies and shrouded in commercial secrecy, write Isabella Besedova of the CEE Bankwatch Network in an exclusive op-ed for EurActiv.
Russia’s Khimki Forest Threatened by Highway Project
The Nation | May 4, 2011Time is running out for Russian activists hoping to stop the construction of a highway through an old growth forest outside of Moscow. In an eleventh hour campaign, the Movement to Defend Khimki Forest is targeting the French company overseeing the controversial project. Vinci, one of Europe’s largest corporations, signed the contract for the Moscow-St. Petersburg motorway in 2009 and could begin the first phase of development this month. The 43-kilometer section will slice through the heart of an old growth oak forest, an important corridor for large game and home to numerous endangered plant species, as well as a cherished greenbelt on the edge of one of the world’s most polluted cities.
How can governments and industry win public support for new low-carbon technologies?
Comment Visions | April 26, 2011As a start, lumping together all low-carbon technologies is not the most advisable approach to win public support for new, low-carbon technologies.
The EBRD: What role does it have to play 20 years on?
BBC | April 19, 2011Twenty years on from its creation, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) may think it is time to reconsider, or at least extend, its remit.
Are the EU’s public banks fit to support southern Med’s new democrats?
The Guardian | April 19, 2011The European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development have failed to prevent corruption and social injustice
Leaders tell EU neighbours to stress-test nuclear plants
EuObserver | April 19, 2011EU leaders have called on neighbouring states including Russia and Ukraine to carry out ‘stress tests’ on their nuclear plants.
Banking is not a tool to support democracy
New Europe | March 28, 2011Over the next three years, the European Commission is planning to channel seven billion euro for the Southern Mediterranean through the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). But the track record of these two banks raises serious questions over their ability to support democratisation in the region.
Advocacy groups oppose larger North Africa role for EBRD, EIB
Reuters | March 23, 2011A loose coalition of advocacy groups is urging shareholders of two European Union-backed banks to halt plans to expand lending in North Africa as too little attention has been paid to the democratic credentials of recipient countries.
