As human rights declaration turns 70, development banks have a ways to go to respect and protect rights defenders
December 10, 2018
Today 10 December marks the seventieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. To coincide with this milestone, Bankwatch together with more than 200 organisations globally has called on international financiers [1] to ensure that these institutions support the realisation of human rights, avoid causing or contributing to rights abuses, promote an enabling environment for public participation, and safeguard rights defenders.
Leaked World Bank report depicts Georgia’s Nenskra hydropower project as major liability
November 14, 2018
Successive international analyses have cast serious doubts over the financial viability of the planned Nenskra plant. While the Georgian government keeps the project’s contract confidential, a leaked World Bank report offers a scathing account of the fiscal implications of this hydropower development.
Controversial dam project in Georgia abandoned by constructor
October 30, 2018
Already mired by controversy, the billion dollar Nenskra hydropower plant is now facing another major hurdle as the company contracted to realize the project is now leaving it.
The European Parliament resolution urges European financial institution to respect indigenous peoples rights
August 9, 2018
Celebrate the rights of those 5 per cent who hold 80 per cent of the planet’s biodiversity. Today is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
Devastating floods are the latest warning sign about controversial Nenskra hydropower project
July 31, 2018
From the outside, this tragedy might seem like a natural disaster, a force majeure. But one cannot ignore the human factors at play.
Nenskra Hydro Project – Update
June 29, 2018
The Asian Infrastracture Investment Bank is considering a non-sovereign loan of USD 100 million for a 280 MW reservoir-type hydropower plant, located in the Nenskra and Nakra valleys of Northwest Georgia. We would like to provide information about new developments that the AIIB should consider as part of its due dillgence on the project.
Nenskra complaint to the European Investment Bank
June 1, 2018
In our opinion, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has failed to comply with the Standard 7 by not respecting the status of Svans as indigenous peoples. The Bank did not fulfill its environmental and social standards: it ignored the project’s significa
Request to the EBRD’s PCM on the Nenskra hydropower project
May 30, 2018
The conclusions of the EBRD’s Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) are not guided by detailed field work and focus group research with the affected communities – indigenous Svans, nor are they based on the robust and objective analysis of
How compliant is ADB to its own safeguards policies?
May 18, 2018
A Georgia hydropower project has locals and civil society concerned. One of the banks considering funding the project is ADB, yet a complaint filed with its compliance review panel shows the limitations of its safeguards. The panel recommends a full in
Nenskra hydropower project – May 2018 update
May 10, 2018
The banks have a responsibility to ensure that when they make an investment, they mitigate and avoid situations that put persons at risk. The Nenskra dam in Georgia is one example where the lack of proper environmental and social assessment can potenti
