Devex Newswire: IFC response to child abuse allegations falls flat with some

The International Finance Corporation issued a rebuttal to claims that it ignored allegations of child sex abuse at one of its projects, but the civil society groups that have been spearheading those claims are thoroughly unimpressed. Also in today’s edition: The U.K. finally releases a development strategy that elicits a sigh of relief, and frustration. Plus, can you address health and climate change without talking about oil and gas? A lackluster response The International Finance Corporation has issued a formal response to long-simmering accusations that it turned its back on child sex abuse allegations in one of its projects. But the response by the World Bank’s private sector arm has not satisfied civil society groups, who are clamoring for an independent investigation and remedy for victims, among other demands. “We are disappointed in the defensiveness and disingenuousness of the response. Frankly, we were hoping for more humility and honesty from the World Bank in response to evidence that it conspired with its client to cover-up a child sexual abuse scandal,” David Pred, head of Inclusive Development International, tells Devex Contributing Reporter Sophie Edwards. On Nov. 10, the head of IFC, Makhtar Diop, wrote to civil society groups that he is “deeply disturbed” by reports of alleged child sex abuse by two teachers affiliated with Bridge International Academies involving 15 students. He outlined steps the organization is taking, including launching an “in-depth portfolio review to identify projects with elevated risks of gender-based violence, including against children,” and sending a high-level mission to Kenya and other countries “to get a much deeper understanding of this problem on the ground.” Diop’s letter also states that IFC worked with Bridge to improve the company’s child safeguarding procedures. But that’s not good enough for some activists, who dispute the version of events that Diop presented regarding IFC’s independent watchdog. The ongoing furor also comes as the World Bank pushes to expand its balance sheet and its remit to encompass climate change. “We are all being asked to trust the bank with more money for a broader vision, but the head of IFC is showing us that the bank refuses to take responsibility for outcomes of its own projects and therefore doesn’t deserve that trust,” says Margaux Day, policy director at the Accountability Counsel. Read: Civil society groups lambaste IFC over response to sex abuse allegations (Pro) ICYMI: IFC slammed by its own watchdog for ignoring child sex abuse allegations + A Devex Pro membership offers deeper analysis of the development sector, exclusive digital events, and access to the world’s largest global development job board. Try it out today by signing up for a 15-day free trial. Dangers of ‘healthwashing’ “The United Arab Emirates is not exactly a neutral country with respect to fossil fuels.” --— Richard Horton, editor-in-chief, The Lancet Horton’s opinion is not exactly unique in that many people are concerned about a Middle Eastern petrostate hosting the world’s most important gathering on climate change, whose effects cannot be addressed without cutting the very fossil fuels that the UAE built its wealth on. Those concerns extend to the toll that climate change is wreaking on our bodies, which will be a core theme at this year’s U.N. Climate Change Conference, or COP 28. While advocates are cheering that health will occupy a preeminent role at COP, Horton warned of the “danger of healthwashing” while speaking at the launch of a Lancet report last week. Specifically, he said “there is a real concern that the whole of COP 28 is going to focus on adaptation, and dodge the bullet, so to speak, about mitigation” — which deals with the tough question of how to phase out emissions-churning oil production. He added that there has been evidence that some COP 28 participants “have been cautious about pushing mitigation messages knowing that the UAE will not particularly welcome those.” The Lancet Countdown report, echoing a slew of other studies, says the world is moving in the wrong direction when it comes to curbing fossil fuel use. That doesn’t bode well for the health of people and the planet, my colleague Jenny Lei Ravelo writes. The report projects that if temperatures rise to 2 degrees Celsius, heat-related deaths will increase by 320% by midcentury, as will the spread of infectious diseases. Already, the world is on track for 2.7 degrees Celsius of heating by 2100. Read: Health groups pick fossil fuel phaseout as top priority at COP 28 + For more content like this, sign up to Devex CheckUp — our free, weekly newsletter that keeps you up to date with all the must-read global health coverage. Rise above the COP cacophony COP 28 is going to be a madhouse of people, meetings, speeches, and competing demands. People will also be competing for attention. So how do you ensure you’re heard above the rest? Professional speechwriters Kate Childs Graham and Vinca LaFleur have some tips on leading a conversation at a crowded event. Among them: Study the terrain and stake your ground. “To drive a discussion, you first need to know where it has been, where it is now, and where it’s headed,” they write in an opinion piece for Devex. “What are your collaborators, competitors, champions, and critics saying? What’s missing from the conversation? What can you say that no one else is saying? Or, how can you say something that will make listeners respond, ‘I never thought about it that way before?’” Other tips: Forget the forest, focus on the trees, and cross-pollinate. No we’re not talking about plants and gardening. To figure it out, check out the article. Opinion: How to ensure you’re heard at COP 28 and beyond (Pro) + Join us for our leader roundtable event on Nov. 28 to hear from climate leaders about their expectations for COP 28 and strategies for effective climate advocacy, and to get your pressing COP-related questions answered. Unrealistic and underwhelming? Let’s start with the good news: The U.K. government, led by a Conservative Party that largely views development as an afterthought, released a development strategy that experts have called the first detailed blueprint in more than a decade. It signals at least a rhetorical return to fighting global poverty. The bad news: It rules out an early return to spending the U.N. benchmark of 0.7% of gross national income on aid — after a cut to spending 0.5% in 2020. It’s also mum on any action to rein in U.K. tax havens, pursue fair trade, or require private lenders to offer desperately needed debt relief. Rather, as our U.K. Correspondent Rob Merrick has been reporting, it looks to tap London’s private wealth to curb poverty — a potentially fanciful proposition given that the city’s investments are concentrated in middle-income countries with secure markets and the ability to absorb capital. Ian Mitchell, a co-director at the Center for Global Development, said such proposals were “light on specific actions and, as it notes, past efforts have produced ‘limited success.’” Read: UK aid plan attacked for unrealistic aims and silence on budget cuts + Check out our page to get the latest news and analysis on the U.K. development sector. Efficient injection Rob also details how the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is poised to agree on only the third capital increase in its history to help sustain momentum to rebuild war-affected Ukraine. The €4 billion ($4.3 billion) injection is seen as the “most efficient way” to pump in funds without the need to obtain time-consuming guarantees from shareholder governments. EBRD believes the move will allow it to continue to provide €1.5 billion a year of financing to the country — a sum the London-based bank hopes will double to €3 billion when the war is over and private sector enthusiasm grows. Read: EBRD poised to agree €4 billion capital increase to rebuild Ukraine In other news German Chancellor Olaf Scholz committed €4 billion to the Africa-EU Green Energy Initiative until 2030, affirming that a significant share of Europe's largest economy's green hydrogen needs will be sourced from the continent. [Bloomberg] The World Bank announced a potential $12 billion support to Kenya over the next three years, signaling a significant financial boost to the East African country. [Reuters] South Africa is planning to temporarily exit U.N. refugee conventions to tighten immigration, citing the need for a reset on its liberal asylum and immigration policies. [The Telegraph] Sign up to Newswire for an inside look at the biggest stories in global development.