Established to promote transition to market-oriented economies in the countries of central and eastern Europe and Central Asia, the EBRD’s lending often fails to benefit the people in these countries and regularly prioritises carbon-intensive and environmentally damaging development.
Alternative news on the EBRD
Harsh economic realities and the discernible trend of democratic retrenchment in EBRD recipient countries suggest there are serious deficiencies in the bank’s overall ‘market-oriented’ approach.
EBRD PROJECTS WE MONITOR
Belgrade incinerator public private partnership (PPP), Belgrade, Serbia
The planned Belgrade waste incinerator, being considered for financing by the EBRD, EIB and IFC, is incompatible with waste prevention and recycling targets and endangers the already precarious livelihoods of the 12,000 people waste-picking in the city. The project’s environmental and social impact assessment fails to resolve numerous issues.
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EBRD / EIB energy policy review
The European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are both reviewing their energy sector lending policies. This is an opportunity to live up to their potential by combating climate change and promoting a sustainable future for all.
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Destructive hydropower in southeast Europe
International commercial and public banks have been bankrolling a wave of hydropower projects across Southeast Europe that have damaged pristine rivers, including in protected areas. These financiers need to take their share of the responsibility and stop financing projects in sensitive areas.
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LATEST UPDATES
The weight of gold
Blog entry | 16 January, 2019The new gold mine in Krumovgrad boasts environmental performance and social responsibility, yet there are black spots along the path of the Bulgarian gold around the globe.
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New reports add details to investigation of Armenia gold mine
Blog entry | 8 January, 2019If you’re looking for a revolution, sign up for notifications from your embassy. The messages pinging on smartphone screens that night in October began not long after stepping into the evening streets around the Yerevan Cascade, warning of impending demonstrations outside the Armenian parliament. To be sure, the flashing blue and red sirens and thousands of people flooding past were impossible to ignore as well, so the consulates’ SMSs came as little surprise and instead provided more than anything context to the oncoming commotion.
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Belgrade incinerator plans raise burning questions
Blog entry | 19 December, 2018The planned Belgrade waste incinerator in Serbia, being considered for financing by the EBRD, EIB and IFC, is incompatible with increasing waste prevention and recycling rates and endangers the already precarious livelihoods of the 12,000 people who currently live from waste-picking in the city. The recently published environmental and social impact assessment for the project fails to resolve either of these issues, as well as numerous others.
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LATEST PUBLICATION
This report is a critical analysis, with regard to the impacts on biodiversity, of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) of the Amulsar Gold Project. Special attention has been paid to the biodiversity offsetting proposal for creation o
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Our critique of the EBRD
After more than two decades of promoting market economies in post-Soviet countries, the EBRD has a poor track record of keeping up with its mission to protect human rights and the environment and promote sustainable development.
For the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall we collected examples of EBRD operations to illustrate just how the bank’s activities are often not worth celebrating – at least not for the affected people and environment.
Strong safeguard policies to guide bank lending are essential. At the EBRD meetings we are pushing for these types of reforms based on our collected experience with bank projects across the region.
Too often the EBRD safeguard policies fail to deliver protection for people, climate and the environment. What can be done?
Bankwatch produced this video for the 20th anniversary of EBRD operations, at a time when the bank announced intentions to extend its operational activities to north Africa.
Toolkit for civil society
Guidance on how to use the EBRD’s grievance mechanism for civil society, local groups and individuals that are adversely affected by a bank project.
