The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII) warned that the World Bank's proposed environmental and social policy falls short of standards enshrined in international human rights agreements, and urged the Bank to improve its requirements for consultation with indigenous peoples.
6 February 2015: The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII) warned that the World Bank’s proposed environmental and social policy falls short of standards enshrined in international human rights agreements, and urged the Bank to improve its requirements for consultation with indigenous peoples.
The World Bank is undertaking a multi-stage review of its existing Environmental and Social Policy and associated Environmental and Social Standards, including its safeguard policy on indigenous peoples (ESS 7). The Bank’s Executive Committee on Development Effectiveness (CODE) released a draft for comment on 30 July 2014.
The draft ESS 7 requires the World Bank’s borrowers to consult with indigenous peoples on the design and implementation of a project, and requires the Bank to ensure that actions are taken to safeguard the well-being of indigenous peoples in project areas. It also stipulates that free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) of indigenous peoples will be required where proposed projects will affect their lands and cultural heritage. It proposes that an “alternative approach” be applied in exceptional circumstances where there is a serious risk of exacerbating civil conflict, or where identification of indigenous peoples is inconsistent with the constitution of the country. The policy recognizes indigenous pastoralists who have a nomadic lifestyle, and requires borrowers to protect indigenous peoples who are in voluntary isolation.
In a letter to Jim Yong Kim, World Bank President, Dalee Sambo Dorough, PFII Chair, called for the “alternative approach” to be removed from the draft policy, as it would permit States to opt out of the safeguards. He requested that the proposed safeguards be fully aligned with international human rights standards and that they specifically mention the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the guiding human rights framework.
On FPIC, Dorough stressed the need for consultations with potentially affected indigenous peoples to be undertaken at the earliest possible stage, and said the safeguards must address inequalities in bargaining power between the borrower and indigenous peoples.
Finally, he invited the Bank to take the opportunity of the PFII’s upcoming 14th session, convening 20 April to 1 May 2015, to gather input on the draft policy. [PFII Webpage] [PFII Letter to World Bank] [World Bank Press Release on ESS 7 Consultation Process]