The Global Transparency Initiative and leaders of several African groups have urged African Development Bank President Donald Kaberuka to conduct public consultations as it reviews its disclosure policy.
The Bank has indicated recently that it intends to revamp the Bank’s 2005 disclosure policy, a commitment praised in the July 30 letter to Kaberuka.
Less clear is how the AfDB intends to conduct the review.
“As you begin this effort, we would like to encourage the Bank to conduct a consultation process to gather information and receive suggestions,” the letter states, noting that other international financial institutions have consulted with interested parties before rewriting their disclosure policies.
“Consultations will allow your institution to enrich the development of a new information policy and add credibility to the final product,” according to the letter.
More specifically, the letter suggests that the Bank release draft policies and lay out in advance a system to receive input from the public. “We recommend that you solicit ideas for a new policy both in writing and in public consultation meetings,” the letter states.
The Global Transparency Initiative is a coalition of development groups and freedom of expression groups, focused on transparency at the IFIs. The GTI members are:Institute for Democracy in South Africa, South Africa; Bank Information Center, USA; Article XIX, London; Access to Information Network, Philippines; Centro de Derechos Humanos y Ambiente, Argentina; Freedominfo, USA; Centre for Law and Democracy, Canada; Fundar, Center for Analysis and Research, Mexico; CEE BankWatch Network, Slovakia]
Also endorsing the letter were steering committee members of the new AfDB Civil Society Forum: Maurice Ouma Odhiambo, Programmes Officer at Ujamaa Center, Kenya; Aly Sagne, Président de Lumière Synergie pour le Développement, Senegal; and Mamadou Goita, Directeur Exécutif IRPAD/Afrique, Mali.
Filed under: IFTI Watch