On August 8, 2022, Orsolya Székely, the Accountability Mechanism Secretary, informed the Executive Directors of the Board of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) that a complaint related to World Bank projects in Togo returned to the Inspection Panel to commence investigation. There was no agreement between parties to pursue dispute resolution.
This follows suit after the World Bank Board of Directors had approved an Inspection Panel recommendation to investigate the West Africa Coastal Areas Resilience Investment Project, Additional Financing– West Africa Coastal Areas Resilience Investment Project, and Global Environment Facility projects in Togo following a complaint submitted by two community members alleging that the projects did not adhere to several World Bank policies and procedures.
On June 27, 2022, the Accountability Mechanism Secretary wrote to the Requesters (the complainants) and the Borrower (the Government of Togo), offering the opportunity for dispute resolution. To facilitate the Parties’ ability to make an informed decision, a Dispute Resolution Service (DRS) team conducted a mission to Togo to meet with the Parties from July 18 to July 21, 2022. A follow-up mission was conducted from July 26 to July 28, 2022.
Dispute Resolution is a voluntary process, and as there was no agreement to pursue dispute resolution, according to the Accountability Mechanism procedure, Székely informed the Executive Directors that the case is returned to the Inspection Panel to commence an investigation.
