Common Approaches Overview

The OECD's Working Party on Export Credits (ECG) is reviewing its Recommendation on Common Approaches to the Environment and Officially Supported Export Credits, with the hope of approving a new Recommendation late in 2006. NGOs led by ECA Watch have recommended substantial changes in the standards inherent in the Common Approaches

Background

In 1998, ECAs based in OECD countries, under pressure from international NGOs, made a statement of intent to develop environmental and sustainable development standards for export credit support. In 1999, they agreed to exchange environmental information for larger projects, but continued to refuse to meet in more than an ad hoc manner with NGOs on these issues. An Action Statement was developed in 2000 and in April 2001 NGOs submitted informed technical comments based on copies of an internal OECD negotiating text. A statement on Common Approaches was drafted late in 2001, but the U.S. refused consensus acceptance, making it a purely voluntary agreement, with most OECD ECAs supposedly applying the 2001 Common Approaches standards to projects receiving their support from December 2001. In December 2003, further negotiations achieved a consensus based on a number of vague standards to be “benchmarked” by member ECAs, resulting in approval of a formal OECD Recommendation on Common Approaches on Environment and Officially Supported Export Credits.

The 2003 Recommendation was revised in November 2005 to include new incentives for renewable energy technologies, although large hydro dams were included in the definition of renewable energy despite widespread evidence of their harmful impact on the affected communities and the environment.

The 2003 Recommendation as amended in 2005 is up for review in 2006 and NGOs, led by the ECA Watch network, are calling for major changes.

The Common Approaches Review Process

At consultations with the OECD in October 2005 and May 2006, and in letters and technical briefs, ECA Watch campaigners have lobbied for major revisions to the Common Approaches based on a demonstrably uneven application of even weak standards by OECD based ECAs since the original standards were drafted in 2001. Revisions are required in areas such as disclosure and transparency, monitoring and compliance and participation by affected communities in project designs and mitigation measures, etc.

Below we provide a series of links to ECA Watch presentations to the OECD with constructive recommendations for changes to and strengthening of the Common Approaches:

- ECA Watch letter of January 6, 2006 recommending issues to be covered in the 2006 Common Approaches Review

- ECA Watch letter of June 9th 2006 recommending language to be used in the new Common Approaches draft

- ECA Watch/Cornerhouse paper on Participation: "The Licence to Finance" (PDF)

- ECA Watch/FoE France paper on post approval monitoring and compliance (PDF)