Mission and status review
10. In July 1999 the then Secretary of State for
Trade and Industry announced a review of ECGD's mission and status.
The purpose of the review was to ensure that ECGD could continue
to support UK firms effectively and at the same time "become
more consistent with the Government's wider objectives",[5]
including the promotion of sustainable development, human rights
and good governance throughout the world.
11. The report of the review argued, and the Government
accepted, that it was in ECGD's own interest to promote projects
which offer a long-term benefit to the country concerned: badly
executed projects can have negative implications for the environment
and for local inhabitants and represent a higher level of risk
for ECGD. Commenting of the outcome of the review, the Secretary
of State stated that
"ECGD can assist the Government's multilateral
initiative to help the poorest countries emerge from debt and
poverty burdens, and developing countries achieve sustainable
development by supporting productive projects ".[6]
It was also stated that "The UK will take the lead multilaterally
in promoting a similar approach by other Export Credit Agencies".[7]
Our inquiry
12. Our purpose has been to determine the extent
to which ECGD has successfully incorporated the Government's commitment
to sustainable development and multilateral action into its policies
and operations and to identify the need and the scope for further
reform and further integration of sustainable development principles.
13. During our inquiry we took oral evidence in May
and June 2003 from a range of non-governmental organisations (NGOs)
including Friends of the Earth, WWF-UK and The Corner House[8]
in addition to ECGD themselves. We also received several written
memoranda. We are grateful to all those who assisted our inquiry.
1 Horst Kohler, Reforming the International Financial
System, Berne Union Year Book 2001, February 2001. Back
2
Dr Sue Hawley, Turning a Blind Eye: Corruption and the UK Export
Credits Guarantee Department, June 2003. Back
3
A Better Quality of Life: A Strategy for Sustainable Development
for the United Kingdom, CM 4345, May 1999, para 6.41. Back
4
Department for International Development, Eliminating World
Poverty: Making Globalisation Work for the Poor, Cm 5006,
December 2000, paras 206-8. Back
5
Department of Trade and Industry, Review of ECGD's Mission
and Status, July 2000, Cm. 4790, Foreword. Back
6
Department of Trade and Industry, Review of ECGD's Mission
and Status, July 2000, Cm. 4790, Foreword. Back
7
Department of Trade and Industry, Review of ECGD's Mission
and Status, July 2000, Cm. 4790, Foreword. Back
8
The Corner House is a not for profit research and advocacy organisation
working in the fields of human rights and development. Back