In this submission, a group of over 30 civil society organizations calls on the IFC to shift its approach from managing displacement after it occurs to preventing it wherever possible, ensuring projects respect human rights, secure genuine community consent, and leave affected communities better off rather than worse off. You can read the full submission here.
In this submission, CSOs note that PS5 provides some protections for people displaced by projects, but evidence shows displacement is still causing serious human rights harms, including loss of livelihoods, food insecurity, health problems, cultural loss, psychological trauma, and increased vulnerability—especially for women, children, and Indigenous Peoples. These outcomes contradict the goals of sustainable development and reveal structural flaws in the standard itself, not just weak implementation. Reform is urgent, particularly as demand for transition minerals accelerates new mining projects.
Key recommendations include:
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Prohibit forced evictions and require human-rights-based due diligence on land expropriation.
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Require equitable negotiations with affected communities to secure Broad Community Support or FPIC for Indigenous Peoples.
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Prioritize avoidance of displacement through project design and alternatives.
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Apply PS5 retroactively to past displacement linked to projects.
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Ensure legitimate community governance structures are used in engagement.
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Require land restoration, closure plans, and time limits for land use.
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Guarantee improved livelihoods and meaningful benefit-sharing, not just compensation.
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Make livelihood restoration outcome-based and independently audited.
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Protect collective land rights and cultural relationships to land.
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Extend PS5 to supply chains causing displacement.
You can read the full submission here.