In this letter to the IFC, a group of 46 civil society groups argues that there is a major gap between the IFC’s environmental and social (E&S) safeguard policies and how they are actually implemented in projects, leading to harm for communities and reputational risks for the institution. To address this, the IFC should better align staff incentives with successful implementation of its Sustainability Framework.
Key recommendations
- IFC should revise staff evaluation, promotion, compensation, and performance systems so employees are rewarded for ensuring strong E&S compliance, not just project approvals or financial outcomes.
- Staff performance metrics should include:
- quality of client compliance with safeguards,
- meaningful consultation with communities and Indigenous Peoples,
- transparency and disclosure,
- responsiveness to grievances and information requests,
- reporting of gender-based violence or reprisals.
- The IFC should ensure stronger engagement with Indigenous Peoples and affected communities, including respecting Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) and genuine community support, especially in the context of high-risk projects.
- There should be incentives that encourage staff cooperation with the IFC’s accountability mechanism, the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), including timely responses, sharing documentation, and implementing recommendations.
- There should be transparency around any changes to compensation and promotion systems.