World Bank Accountability - In Theory and in Practice

International financial institutions such as the World Bank should be accountable – but to whom and for what? What role is there for legal and social normativity to prescribe, influence and assess behaviour and, ultimately, realize specific outcomes? How do we answer such questions in theory and how do we implement such answers in practice? This book considers these matters regarding the World Bank’s development-lending operations – specifically, through the perspectives offered by its citizen-driven accountability mechanism: the Inspection Panel. The book analyzes interests, demands, expectations and conceptions surrounding the multidimensional notion of ‘accountability’ – thereby demonstrating why, in a diverse and dynamic world, accountability questions remain both relevant and challenging to answer conclusively. With its emphasis on theory and practice, this book is aimed both at researchers studying and practitioners working in transnational regulatory governance contexts involving multiple actors, politico-legal systems and forms of normativity. With its compendium of challenges characterizing Bank-financed development projects, this book can also introduce students of various disciplines to the development-lending operations of multilateral institutions.