Revisions to Resettlement Policy

A statement from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) to the World Bank urging modifications to the draft Operational Policy/Bank Practice (OP/BP) 4.12 on involuntary resettlement. CIEL argues that the draft fails to protect indigenous peoples, ignores voluntary resettlement, and prioritizes the 'restoration' of livelihoods over the 'improvement' of living standards.

• CIEL argues that the draft OP/BP 4.12 contains language that undermines the rights of indigenous peoples by being "implicitly permissive of the forcible displacement of indigenous peoples" even when it threatens their cultural survival or when replacement land is not provided.
• The document asserts that the draft policy fails to address "Voluntary Resettlement," leaving people resettled under such arrangements with no rights under World Bank policy. CIEL cites the China Western Poverty Reduction Project as a warning, noting the Bank did not publicly release the Voluntary Settlement Plan or prepare an Involuntary Resettlement plan according to policy.
• CIEL recommends that the World Bank remove language referring to the "restoration" of livelihoods in paragraph 2(c) of the OP. They argue that "restoration" creates too low a threshold and that the policy objective should explicitly be the "improvement in the standard of living" for displaced persons.
• The statement claims the draft OP/BP contravenes findings from the Operations Evaluation Department (OED), which concluded that resettlement failures were due to focusing on "'plans' rather than 'results' as the touchstone of quality management." CIEL argues the draft continues this by measuring success based on whether the "objectives of the resettlement instrument" were met rather than the policy's development outcomes.
• CIEL highlights a failure in the draft policy to address economic rehabilitation, noting that the OED found this to be the "weakest part of planning." They suggest adding language to OP para. 11 stating that "Experience has shown the need for the Bank and affected communities to take an active role in planning, supervising, and monitoring economic rehabilitation."
• CIEL supports a proposed two-year review of the resettlement policy's implementation, provided it is led by independent experts to evaluate both historical development outcomes and the impact of the new OP/BP on staff practice.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2001). Revisions to Resettlement Policy. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/clark_resettlement_10oct01.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Revisions to Resettlement Policy. 2001. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/clark_resettlement_10oct01.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Revisions to Resettlement Policy |date=10 October 2001 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/clark_resettlement_10oct01.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2001revisions, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Revisions to Resettlement Policy}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2001}, month = oct, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/clark_resettlement_10oct01.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }