Former Chairman Gonzalo Castro de la Mata Looks Back on His Time with the Panel

Gonzalo Castro de la Mata's five-year term as an Inspection Panel member, including four years as chairman, ended in mid-December 2018. In this video, he discusses why he joined the Panel, what about the Panel surprised him, the greatest misunderstanding about the Panel among World Bank staff, what case left the greatest impression on him and the Panel’s importance to the World Bank.

Spring Meetings - Inspection Panel Events

The Panel will partner with the Bank Information Center (BIC) on a session titled, “Stakeholder Engagement in the Face of Shrinking Civil Society Space and Reprisals Against Community Representatives” at the Civil Society Policy Forum held as part of the International Monetary Fund-World Bank Group Spring Meetings. The session – scheduled for Thursday, April 11, from 9-10:30 a.m. in World Bank’s I Building, room 220 – will be moderated by Juergen Zattler, an executive director on the Bank’s Board. Panelists will include Panel Chair Imrana Jalal, BIC Executive Director Elana Berger and Charles Di Leva, the World Bank’s chief environmental and social standards officer.

Also on April 11 the Panel will host its Spring Meetings Open House from 5-7 p.m. at its office, MC 10-512. All are invited for food, drinks and spirited conversation!!

25th Anniversary Book Updated with Video Interviews

The Panel has updated the book it published late last year to mark its 25th anniversary to include 33 short video segments from interviews with 19 individuals – including current and former Panel members and representatives of the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors, Bank management, civil society and communities that have filed Requests for Inspection. The book can be accessed by clicking here.

CASE DEVELOPMENTS

Uganda: Water Management and Development Project and the Energy for Rural Transformation Phase III Project – Panel Preparing its Investigation Report

The Inspection Panel is preparing for the Board of Executive Directors its Investigation Report in response to two Requests for Inspection of the projects. The Requesters raise concerns about potential harm caused by the construction of the Isimba Dam and the consequent flooding of a part of the Kalagala Offset Area (KOA) in Uganda. Although the World Bank is not financing the construction of the dam, the Requesters claim environmental and social harm from the flooding of the KOA, which was established as a requirement of the earlier Uganda Private Power Generation (Bujagali) Project. A Panel team visited Uganda last November during its investigation. More

India: Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project for Low Income States – Board Approves Panel Recommendation to Investigate

The Board on March 1, 2019, approved the Panel’s recommendation to investigate the project. The Panel had received two Requests for Inspection from tribal community members who raised concerns, respectively, about a water treatment plant (WTP) and an elevated storage reservoir (ESR), both of which are part of water schemes financed by the project. The Requesters claim the WTP and the ESR are being built on community land that has historical and cultural significance to them, and they allege a lack of consultation and disclosure of information. Since the Requests raise similar issues related to the same project, the Panel is processing them jointly. A Panel team visited India last December and met with officials of the federal, state and district governments, World Bank representatives and community members affected by the two water schemes cited in the Requests.  More

India: Amaravati Sustainable Infrastructure and Institutional Development Project – Panel Preparing its Report and Recommendation

The Panel is preparing for the Board its Report and Recommendation on whether an investigation is warranted in response to a 2017 Request for Inspection filed by landowners from the area proposed for the construction of the Amaravati capital city in Andhra Pradesh. They allege harm from a land pooling scheme being used to assemble the land required for the city, as well as from other project activities. The Panel has twice deferred its decision on whether to recommend an investigation of the proposed project to the Board. In the second instance, the Panel proposed a deferral of its recommendation for nine months or when Bank management authorized the appraisal of the proposed project. The Board approved the Panel’s second deferral in July 2018. More

Kenya: Transport Sector Support Project and its Additional Financing – Panel Preparing its Report and Recommendation

A Panel team visited Kenya March 5-9, 2019, as the Panel prepares for the Board its Report and Recommendation on whether an investigation is warranted in response to a Request for Inspection of the project. The Request, received on December 17, 2018, related to impact from works on the Webuye-Kitale road section, in particular the Webuye interchange, which is financed by the project. The Request raises concerns about environmental impact, health and safety issues, impact on livelihoods and inadequate working conditions as well as a lack of consultation and information disclosure. The Panel registered the Request on January 17, 2019. More

Egypt: Upper Egypt Local Development Program-For-Results – Panel Issues Notice of Non-Registration

The Panel on February 14, 2019, issued a Notice of Non-Registration of a Request for Inspection of the program following commitments by the government and the Bank to address the concerns of the Requesters. In their January 8, 2019, Request, residents of the Gerga district in Egypt’s Sohag governorate claimed a program subproject was expected to cover 200 meters of a canal passing through their community but that 90 meters remained uncovered – creating environmental, health and safety impacts. They asked that the entire 200 meters be covered to prevent negative effects on the community. More

ABOUT THE INSPECTION PANEL

The Inspection Panel is an independent complaints mechanism for people and communities who believe that they have been, or are likely to be, adversely affected by a World Bank-funded project. The Board of Executive Directors created the Inspection Panel in 1993 to ensure that people have access to an independent body to express their concerns and seek recourse. The Panel is an impartial fact-finding body, independent from the World Bank management and staff, reporting directly to the Board. The Inspection Panel process aims to promote accountability at the World Bank, give affected people a greater voice in activities supported by the World Bank that affect their rights and interests, and foster redress when warranted.

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