Beyond Wolfowitz: merit and leadership at the World Bank

April 20, 2007
 
Samy Watson
Canadian Executive Director
MC-12-175, 1818 H St. N.W.

Paris, 20 April 2007

Adopt New Mining Guidelines:Report

Canada should adopt guidelines to improve transparency as well as the environmental and human rights practices of Canadian companies involved in extractive industries in the developing world, says a government-appointed advisory group. It says if these measures are adopted, Canada could become a world leader in Corporate Social Responsibility.

Civil society/Industry make unprecedented joint recommendations on mining, oil and gas
Canada could become a world leader on Corporate Social Responsibility if the federal government and other stakeholders accept and act on the recommendations of a groundbreaking report released on Parliament Hill on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the Canadian extractive industry in developing countries. The Report outlines a set of consensus-based recommendations for the Government of Canada, core among which is the implementation of a Canadian CSR Framework (see “Just the Facts” below). If implemented, these recommendations would establish Canada as a global leader in CSR. The Report also calls for important reforms at Export Development Canada and the World Bank.

For pdf, click here.

UN Special Representative explores human rights obligations of financial institutions
There is growing consensus that human rights rank high among the pressing challenges that face both the private sector and its financiers. On February 16, the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative on Human Rights and Transnational Corporations, John Ruggie, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights convened a consultation on human rights and the financial sector in Geneva. The meeting included representatives from a number of export credit agencies (ECAs), the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation, several Equator Principle banks, academia and civil society.

For pdf version, click here.

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights,
in Cooperation with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Human Rights and Transnational Corporations and other Business Enterprises

Consultation on Human Rights and the Financial Sector

February 16, 2007, Geneva

OECD knocks Britain over corruption

This month over 140 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) warned the UK government of the “irreparable harm” the move may cause to the country’s reputation as an anti-corruption champion. British NGOs Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) and Corner House have signaled their intention to initiate a judicial review of the SFO decision to drop the inquiry.

January 31, 2007