This conference served to facilitate dialogue on lessons learned in the sanctions and anti-corruption areas, and to promote unity and collaboration among the MDB community. Issues addressed at the conference included appeals of successorship determinations, the use of restitutions and fines, treatment of strictly confidential evidence withheld from respondents, calculation of sanctions, and the appropriateness of the baseline sanction. Participants also benefited from a discussion led by IFC's Chief Compliance Officer and the WBG Integrity Compliance Specialist on business risk management and compliance issues. This MDB conference reinforced the importance of high-level dialogue on sanctions and anti-corruption matters as a way to take stock and benchmark, identify areas for improvement, and recognize best practices.
Conference participants included judges, secretariat staff, and legal officers from original signatories to the Cross-Debarment Agreement – specifically, the African Development Bank Group, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the Inter-American Development Bank. Representatives from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development also participated in the conference.
The next conference of MDB sanctions appeals bodies is expected to take place in the Fall of 2019.