The approach adopted by the World Bank (the Bank) in relation to Bank-funded projects in developing countries is often criticised. In particular, the failure of the Bank to require that borrowers comply with human rights in funded procurements, has been highlighted. This chapter will analyse the manner in which borrowers may implement human rights considerations in Bank-funded procurements under the 2016 Bank procurement regulations. It will make the link between the Bank’s human rights obligations and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs); consider the extent to which the Bank permits borrowers to include compliance with human rights in Bank-funded contracts, exploring the legal limitations on borrowers in this regard. The chapter argues that with the adoption of the UNGPs, the Bank ought to do more to support borrowers that wish to include human rights in the procurement context, in one of three ways: by supporting borrowers that wish to include human rights concerns as sustainability criteria in funded procurements; by using Bank supervision over the procurement process to exclude firms that abuse human rights from Bank-funded contracts; or by debarring firms that are human rights abusers from accessing future Bank contracts.
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