Video: Spirited away – Mongolia’s mining boom and the people that development left behind
January 27, 2012
Earlier this week we published an overview of two Central Asian mining projects financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development – the Kumtor gold mine in Kyrgyzstan and the Ukhaa Khudag coal mine in Mongolia’s south Gobi desert, which is part of the much larger – in fact the world’s largest – coal deposit at Tavan Tolgoi.
ARCHIVED: Mining boom in Mongolia
January 26, 2012
With huge amounts of unexploited natural resources (gold, copper, coal and more) the Mongolian economy is estimated to grow massively in the years to come. But will it also benefit the people in Mongolia? Our work shows how mining operations lead to pollution and displacement for local herders and exacerbate water scarcity issues.
Tragedy or comedy, what is the Nabucco pipeline really?
January 19, 2012
The announcement of German energy giant RWE to reconsider its plans for the Nabucco pipeline is just the last in a series of confusingly conflicting signals regarding the fate of this gargantuan project.
Comments on the European Neighbourhood Policy and the forthcoming European Neighborhood Instrument
November 30, 2011
The primary goal of the EU’s neighbourhood policy should be based on an insistence on increased democracy in EU neighbourhood countries. This should happen through public participation in decision-making processes, the establishment of good governance and sustainable development practices, increased environmental protection and climate change mitigation and adaptation, as well as increased welfare and social security across these countries.
The people’s perspective please: are public social safety nets important?
November 16, 2011
Yesterday, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) published its Transition Report for 2011, subtitled “The People’s Perspective”. This is because the study pays unprecedented attention to how regular households in post-socialist countries are managing after almost three years of economic crisis.
European Parliament makes a step towards putting the ‘E’ into EBRD
October 19, 2011
By requesting a number of changes at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Parliament has confirmed at least some of Bankwatch’s criticism of the bank’s mode of operation and (in a subtle way) also its overall approach.
Contemplating secure and insecure energy supply
September 7, 2011
The EU external energy policy Communication published today by the European Commission continues the decade-long approach of the EU to ensure the unhindered flow of fossil fuel energy supplies to Europe without a real recognition of the problems this drive creates both inside and outside of the EU.
Comments on the draft EBRD country strategy for the Kyrgyz Republic
August 5, 2011
As the Kyrgyz Republic is an Early Transition Country with limited capacity for additional external borrowing and in light of recent political events in the country, Bankwatch emphasizes that the EBRD must carefully weigh and analyse any project it considers for financing in this particularly vulnerable country.
ARCHIVED: Kumtor Gold Mine, Kyrgyzstan
February 18, 2011
The Kumtor open pit gold mine is located in a majestic surrounding in the Kyrgyzstan mountains. It receives continued support by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, despite several accidents in the past and ongoing environmental damages from the mining operations.
Bankwatch co-production on Kyrgyz gold mine wins at DOK Leipzig while EBRD sights financing for company featured in the film
October 26, 2010
During last weeks internationally-renowned 53rd Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film, DOK Leipzig, Bankwatch’s most recent co-production about the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)-financed Kumtor gold mine in Kyrgyzstan All that Glitters collected two awards: the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk award for an excellent Eastern European documentary film and the Healthy Workplaces Film Award for the best documentary film about the subject of work.
