Whether in Europe or beyond, public money must not become an auxiliary for human rights violations or the marginalisation of affected communities.
We expose cases where development banks fail to protect those impacted by their projects.
We advocate for participation and consultation processes that are not pro-forma exercises, but a tool to ensure people’s well-being.
Close to frontline communities
We’re in direct contact with affected communities and provide updates from their struggles.
Image (c) Rosa Vroom
Where rights are on the line
Nenskra hydropower plant, Georgia
The Nenskra dam is the most advanced of Georgia’s massive plans for hydropower installations in the Upper Svaneti region. It will deprive the local community, ethnic Svans, of lands and livelihoods, but potential negative impacts have not been properly assessed.
Mombasa-Mariakani road project, Kenya
Locals affected by the road project are facing forceful eviction and have not been properly consulted or compensated. The project promoter reacts to criticism with intimidation.
Olkaria geothermal development, Kenya
Financed by several development banks, geothermal installations have uprooted Maasai communities whose fundamental rights as an indigenous people have been ignored at first. The company has so far been slow and reluctant in addressing the Maasai’s complaints.
Latest news
Racing against the clock: Kenyan villagers under imminent threat of eviction by project under EU’s bank’s appraisal
Blog entry | 19 June, 2019Today’s European Development Days forum in Brussels with its aspirational motto ‘building a world which leaves no one behind’ is an ironic backdrop to what is happening in the remote parts of Kenya, where a whole community is facing a threat of forced eviction by a project under appraisal of the EU’s own house bank. About a hundred people were demanded to abandon their homes by tomorrow – 20 June.
Read moreIn Georgia, leaked contract shows Nenskra hydropower project to cost country USD 60 million a year
Press release | 10 June, 2019For immediate release. Prague, Tbilisi – A leaked contract between the Georgian government and the company behind the Nenskra hydropower project includes terms that indicate the project will incur massive losses for the state, according to a report broadcast on 8 June by the national television station Rustavi 2 [1].
Read moreEU enlargement reports show increased concerns on Chinese financing and hydropower sustainability
Blog entry | 30 May, 2019This year’s EU Enlargement Package reiterates a slew of unresolved problems from previous years in the Western Balkans, but gives increased prominence to China’s role in the region and the and the need to reign in uncontrolled hydropower development.
Read moreRelated publications
Complaint to the European Ombudsman regarding the EIB’s non-disclosure of information
Briefing | 14 May, 2019 | Download PDFThis complaint is based on the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the EIB with theEuropean Ombudsman allowing the complainants who are not satisfied with the outcome of the procedure before the European Investment Bank-Complaints Mechanism (EIB-CM)
Nenskra hydropower project: May 2019 update
Briefing | 14 May, 2019 | Download PDFGiven the complexity of the Nenskra project and its immense impact on indigenous Svan communities and the country’s fiscal stability, the EBRD should take responsibility and not provide financial support until the project is properly assessed. Read mor
Letter to EBRD president Suma Chakrabarti
Advocacy letter | 3 April, 2019 | Download PDFCEE Bankwatch Network, Arab Watch Coalition and the International Accountability Project call to the EBRD President, Sir Suma Chakrabarti, to ensure a people-centered Access to Information Policy. Communities, individuals, and civil society have the ri
