World Bank response to NGO concerns about Bujagali is short on detail
8 December 2006
Bank's delayed reply fails to address critical issues of public disclosure or consultation
International Rivers Network (IRN), National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE) and BIC have obtained a copy of the World Bank's reply to their November 2, 2006 letter from a third party.
While the Bank's response acknowledges concerns about the health of Lake Victoria and the Nile River, and indicates that various studies are underway, it provides no specifics about the subject, scope or timeline of those studies, nor does it commit to disclose the analyses in draft form.
The Bank appears not to have learned from its experience with the first incarnation of the Bujagali hydropower project when it comes to the need for public disclosure of the main project contract, the Power Purchase Agreement(PPA). On the NGO's request for an immediate release of this document, the Bank says only that it is "encouraging the Government and Project Sponsor to disclose information" about the PPA.
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