Recommendations for IDB Invest’s Access to Information Policy

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) provides a series of recommendations to the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IDB Invest) to strengthen its draft Access to Information Policy. CIEL argues that the policy should align with international human rights standards and regional agreements, such as the Escazú Agreement, to ensure the safety and meaningful participation of affected communities, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

• CIEL recommends that IDB Invest align its policy with the Escazú Agreement, a legally binding agreement for Latin American and Caribbean States to guarantee rights of access to environmental information and public participation.
• CIEL strongly opposes the provision in paragraph 75 that allows IDB Invest to charge reasonable fees for producing and sending copies of requested information, stating that such fees create barriers for marginalized indigenous peoples and the rural poor.
• To ensure adequate time for stakeholder review, CIEL recommends extending the disclosure timeframe for all projects—including Category A and FI-1 projects—to 120 calendar days prior to Board approval.
• CIEL suggests improvements to the process of obtaining free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) from indigenous people, including requiring site visits to remote rural areas and disclosing reports on how broad community support was determined before Board votes.
• Given the risks to environmental human rights defenders in Latin America, CIEL recommends that the policy protect the identity of information requesters and ensure that requesting information does not preclude the use of grievance mechanisms.
• CIEL proposes that the IIC establish a formal system for the historical declassification of restricted information, suggesting that documents be made public 5 or 10 years after their original date depending on the restriction level.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2018). Recommendations for IDB Invest’s Access to Information Policy. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/CIEL-Recommendations-for-IDB-Invest-Access-Info-Policy-September-2018.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Recommendations for IDB Invest’s Access to Information Policy. 2018. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/CIEL-Recommendations-for-IDB-Invest-Access-Info-Policy-September-2018.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Recommendations for IDB Invest’s Access to Information Policy |date=September 2018 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/CIEL-Recommendations-for-IDB-Invest-Access-Info-Policy-September-2018.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2018recommendations, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Recommendations for IDB Invest’s Access to Information Policy}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2018}, month = sep, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/CIEL-Recommendations-for-IDB-Invest-Access-Info-Policy-September-2018.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }