The Political Prohibition Clause of the World Bank Charter and the Legal Implications for the Fight against Corruption in Africa

Abstract

Article 4(10) of the World Bank Articles of Agreements (hereafter
referred the World Bank Charter) adopted in 1944 prohibits World Bank
staff from taking political factors into account in their operations and
loans decisions for projects of development. Article 4(10) has been at the
heart of a sound debate that is reviewed in this paper in relation to human
rights and corruption. The discussion is a step further of the colloquium
referred as the “Justice and Development Week” organised in November
2010 by the World Bank Legal Vice Presidency Law held in
Washington- USA. The purpose of that international meeting was to
examine the political prohibition clause in International Development
Finance. One of the issues raised during the seminar was the
interpretation of the World Bank Charter particularly its Article 4(10).
This article discusses the matter and focuses mainly on major issues of
the political clause: First, the historical reasons of the insertion of the
political prohibition clause in the World Bank Charter and the
arguments in support of as well as in opposition to such a restrictive
approach by the Bank to engaging with corruption and human rights
issues. Second, an analytical discussion of the Bank’s economic
perspective and exclusive definition to corruption followed by the legal
discrepancies of such a regime of sanctions in comparison with those set
by UN and AU anti-corruption conventions.