More disclosure

THERE is some good news in the access-to-information front. The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank have recently made changes in their disclosure policies that should now make it easier for journalists, researchers, NGOs and others to get information from what were once closed and secretive — but also very rich and very powerful — institutions.

Many of these changes were the result of the demands from a global community of NGOs for greater information access. These NGOs believe  that  international financial institusions were implementing potentially damaging projects in, and demanding questionable policy changes from, developing countries, but were often not held accountable for their mistakes and the consequences of their actions. The NGOs argue that greater transparency could pave the way for greater accountability.

For sure, in recent years, there have been sea changes in the disclosure policies, especially in the World Bank, which has been the focus of much NGO lobbying. The ADB was slower in implementing changes, but has also come around, with an information disclosure policy that went through several rounds of consultations, including with NGOs, and is therefore  much more liberal than that of other regional development banks.

The new policy, for example, makes available project implementation reports at the early stages, thereby allowing local people to question projects not after the fact, but even before they are completed. Project evaluation reports will also be disclosed.

This is a big step from the 1990s. In 1995, for example, the PCIJ reported on the failure of the ADB-funded government reforestation project, but was unable to obtain project evaluation reports from the Bank. Fortunately, we were able to obtain copies elsewhere.

Apart from project information and project monitoring and evaluation reports, the new Public Communication Policy approved by the ADB board on April 22, 2005 will allow the public access to decisions by the ADB  board and core administrative documents information. The new policy takes effect September 1. Already, a wealth of information is already available on the ADB website, although noneconomists may find much of what’s there unintelligible (but that’s another problem altogether).

Meanwhile, on March 8,  the World Bank approved more revisions on its disclosure policy. As of April 1, minutes of board meetings have been made available. In fact, the minutes are now online. In addition, Country Assistance Strategies are now uniformly available (previously those of the 81 poorest countries were withheld) as are  project completion notes, and on a pilot basis, the drafts of operational policy reviews.

Check out the website of the NGO, Bank Information Center or BIC, for the most comprehensive information on the disclosure policies of international financial institutions  BIC documents information policies in 10 such institutions, including the IMF. Another important resource for information enthusiasts is freedominfo.org.