WORLD vs. BANK - Public Hearing on the World Bank in The Hag
Juliane Westphal - 08.10.2007 11:16
The World Bank Campaign Europe is preparing a public hearing on the World Bank in co-operation with the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal. It will take place on the 15th of October in The Hague, Netherlands, one week before the Annual Meetings of the World Bank.
 Invitation WORLD vs BANK -
The World Bank is being criticised more strongly than ever by donor and borrower governments as well as civil society organisations and local communities for increasing rather than reducing poverty by imposing harmful economic policy conditions; for environmental devastation; for contributing to conflict; and for failing to respect local peoples’ rights.
2007 is the year where donor governments negotiate the 15th replenishment of funds to the concessional arm of the World Bank, the International Development Association (IDA). The conclusions of the Hearing will put donor governments under pressure to set more precise objectives for how taxpayers’ aid money should be spent, and to audit performance on a regular basis. The documentation of the Hearing will also provide a solid source to feed an intensive debate about the future of the organisation, the current development model and potential alternatives.
Witnesses from all Southern continents will give testimony of the impacts of World Bank policies and practices, especially in the areas of conditionalities and fossil fuel project funding. Well-known and respected experts will listen to testimonies from all parts of the world about the impact of World Bank financing and ask questions. In the evening, the expert panel will convene to draft a declaration to be presented in a press conference the next morning.
There will be a live video streamlining for the entire event on www.worldbankcampaigneurope.org. Already now you can cast a vote on the website to tell your development minister to act now and to seriously question and change World Bank policies. Change cannot wait!
PROGRAMME
15th October 2007
9.15-9.45 Introduction
Overview of the history of the World Bank with reference to the Tribunals in 1988 and 1995, and the reasons for this Update Hearing
Lidy Nacpil (Jubilee South, Philippines), Antonio Tricarico (CRBM, Italy)
9.45- 10 Artist presentation
10-16 Testimonies on the impact of privatisation, liberalisation and fossil fuel project funding with questions from the expert panel
Witnesses:
Gonzalo Salgado, National Consumer Defence Network, Nicaragua
Miguel Palacin, CONACAMI Peru
Collins Magalasi, Action Aid Malawi
Temo Tamboura from, CAD Mali
Svetlana Anosova, Berezovka Initiative Group, Kazakhstan
Michael Karikpo, Environmental Rights Action, Nigeria
Expert Panel:
Maartje van Putten (Former member of the World Bank Inspection Panel)
Francesco Martone (Senator, Italy)
Marcos Arruda (Policy Alternatives for the Southern Cone, Trans National Institute)
Medha Patkar (Founder of the National Alliance of People's Movements, India)
Charles Abugre (Development Economist, Ghana)
16-16.30 Video interview with Bert Koenders, Dutch Development Minister
16.30-17 Concluding remarks and looking forward by the President of the Expert Panel
17-18.30 Reception with music from the Philippines
Venue: Nutshuis, Riviervismarkt 5, The Hague, Netherlands
Information, registration and live internet streaming at www.worldbankcampaigneurope.org, Friends of the Earth International, Tel +31 20 622 13 69, Eurodad, Tel +32 2 543 90 60
 E-Mail: jwestphal@eurodad.org  Website: http://www.worldbankcampaigneurope.org
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