How transparent are development finance institutions?

Wednesday 25 January 2023

This hybrid event was co-hosted by the Center for Sustainable Development at the Brookings Institution and Publish What You Fund.

As global crises mount—from the social and economic fallout of COVID-19 to the deepening climate crisis, to food insecurity compounded by the Russian invasion of Ukraine—development finance institutions (DFIs) are being called upon to address these issues. Resources increasingly are being funneled through DFIs but the ability to know what investments are being made and the impact of those investments is a challenge.

The first ever DFI Transparency Index measures and ranks disclosure by 30 multilateral and bilateral DFI portfolios, both sovereign (public sector) and non-sovereign (private sector). The Index finds that overall, DFIs are not transparent enough. DFIs are not providing evidence of impact, data regarding mobilisation, or proof of accountability to communities. But progress is being made – use of and adherence to the standards laid out in the DFI Transparency Tool are guiding the efforts of leading DFIs who have improved their disclosure over the last two years.

We were delighted to be joined at the launch by Margaret Kuhlow, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Development Finance and Policy at the US Treasury, for a keynote address, and enjoyed an engaging discussion on the Index findings and their implications with:

• Elizabeth Boggs Davidsen, Vice President of the Office of Development Policy – US International Development Finance Corporation
• Nadia Daar, Head of Washington DC Office – Oxfam International
• Samantha Attridge, Senior Research Fellow – ODI
• Adriana Kugler – World Bank Group Executive Director for the United States
• Olivier Shingiro, Manager, Corporate Performance & Accountability Division – African Development Bank Group
• George Ingram, senior fellow – Brookings Center for Sustainable Development (moderator)
• Gary Forster, CEO – Publish What You Fund (presentation)

The results of the 2023 DFI Transparency Index can be seen here.