Sanctions Investigations By The World Bank And Other Multilateral Development Banks

Multilateral development banks spend $70bn each year on loans and grants to the developing world. In April 2010, for example, the World Bank approved a $3.75bn loan to South Africa-based Eskom Holdings, to build one of the world's largest and most complex power plants. This was just one of the nearly 30,000 contracts the Bank awards annually. Despite the worldwide recession, the World Bank's member countries recently approved a $5.1bn capital infusion to spur more lending. Together, development banks' largesse is spread over thousands of contractors, which range from small local construction firms to major multinational corporations.

The development banks now look harder at allegations of corruption, fraud and other misconduct in bidding and contracting. Collectively, they have debarred more than 1,100 firms and individuals from contract eligibility in the past decade. In recent years, the banks have cooperated to revise and implement new procedures that will improve