• 18.12.2024
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This report examines the World Bank’s role in Ethiopia and highlights the critical need for meaningful consultation with civil society. It explores how communities can influence the Ethiopia Country Partnership Framework strategy to ensure investments prioritise people, protect ecosystems, and drive sustainable, equitable development for Ethiopia’s future.

The World Bank is one of the most powerful financial institutions on the global stage, directing vast flows of funding and technical assistance to countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and elsewhere. Its reach is immense, affecting the lives of billions of people. Each country where the World Bank has operations has its own Country Partnership Framework, which is a strategy document that outlines the approach the World Bank will take in each country over the following five years. It is important to understand the relevance of this strategy and to influence its content so that it responds to the needs of civil society and project-affected communities.

Central to these efforts is the World Bank’s country engagement process — a key moment where civil society can influence the Bank’s strategy for a given country that will last for a period of four to six years. All projects and investments must align with this agreed strategy, making it a vital leverage point for those seeking to shift the Bank’s priorities away from harmful investments and towards genuinely sustainable and equitable development.

The report, co-published with the Don’t Gas Africa campaign and Power Shift Africa, is intended to support civil society activists and organisations in Ethiopia and across Africa to engage with the World Bank as it develops its new Ethiopia Country Partnership Framework in 2025.

Previously, Recourse has produced similar guides for civil society engagement in Malawi and Southern Africa (2020), Myanmar and South East Asia (2019), and Central Asia (2019).

Photo: Solar powered drip and conservation agriculture in Dhanghista, Ethiopia. Photo by Petra Schmitter / IWMI. Accessed in December 2024.