Draft safeguards not 'watered down,' but 'strengthened'

The World Bank is set to begin a second round of global consultations with various development partners — including civil society groups — about its newly proposed, albeit highly scrutinized, environmental and social safeguards.

The first draft of the bank’s safeguard document was leaked last week to different development groups, which felt the proposed frameworks are “watered down.” Several aid groups argued the new guidelines “fail to adequately respond to or incorporate years of input from civil society and experts around the world.”