European Ombudsman urges European Investment Bank to enhance transparency – once again!
July 26, 2023
The European Investment Bank (EIB), the EU’s lending arm, is facing renewed pressure to improve its transparency (1). In a recent decision, the Ombudsman highlighted the EIB’s insufficient justification for withholding access to environmental information related to a significant loan granted to Poland’s largest state-owned energy utility, PGE (2).
Initial Comments on the Proposal for a Regulation on establishing the Ukraine Facility
July 21, 2023
Together with Ukrainian civil society organisations Ecoaction and Razom We Stand, Bankwatch sent initial comments to the European Parliament on the proposed regulation on Ukraine Facility. To foster green reconstruction and bring Ukraine closer towards EU membership, the civil society groups argue that the Facility must prioritise public participation and environmental sustainability.
Civil society calls for the EU’s Ukraine Facility to prioritise the Partnership Principle and environmental conditionality
July 20, 2023
Today, Bankwatch together with Ecoaction (1) and Razom We Stand (3) submitted initial comments to the European Parliament, urging the integration of the Partnership Principle and environmental conditionality in the legislation on the Ukraine Facility.
Agriculture: priorities for sustainable investments to aid Ukraine’s recovery
June 20, 2023
In this issue paper, we argue that the recovery of the agricultural sector should not solely focus on production growth goals but also prioritise the long-term sustainability of Ukraine as it progresses towards EU membership.
EBRD urban projects in Ukraine must drive national recovery efforts
June 19, 2023
A year and four months after the start of Russia’s large-scale war, Ukraine is on the verge of large-scale reconstruction. The country requires significant investments to reconstruct territorial communities in order to restore life, return residents, recover economic activity and respond to new challenges.
Ukraine’s reconstruction should prioritise a distributed, low-carbon energy system
June 16, 2023
Ukraine aims to transition to 100 per cent renewable energy sources and safely decommission its nuclear power plants by 2050. To achieve these goals, future investments in the energy sector must be underpinned by a policy of zero tolerance toward fossil fuels.
Ukraine’s reconstruction must ensure transparency, environmental standards and public participation
June 16, 2023
Ahead of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023, Bankwatch has prepared a short guide with key issues and recommendations for the international community and international financial institutions to ensure a successful reconstruction of Ukraine.
Destruction of the Kakhovka dam: civil society calls on international community to respond to act of ecocide
June 15, 2023
On 6 June 2023, Russian occupiers blew up the biggest dam in Ukraine. The destruction of the Kakhovka hydropower plant threatens huge environmental and humanitarian consequences for the south of Ukraine and the entire Black Sea region.
The forgotten annex in the EBRD Sustainability Report 2022: human rights
June 9, 2023
In 2022, Bankwatch and its partner civil society organisations provided the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) with over twelve reports highlighting human rights concerns related to investment projects in the Bank’s countries of operation. However, none of these concerns are mentioned in the EBRD Sustainability Report 2022.
Seven years after joining the EBRD’s Green Cities programme, is Yerevan’s green future going up in flames?
June 2, 2023
In May 2023, a massive fire broke out at the Nubarashen landfill on the outskirts of Yerevan, enveloping the city in a cloud of toxic smoke generated by the burning waste. It took 10 days and 2,300 truckloads of soil to extinguish the flames. Coming seven years after Yerevan became a pioneer by joining the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)’s Green Cities initiative, this incident is a stark reminder of the urgent need to adopt a safer and more sustainable approach to waste management and urban planning.
