MICI: We work with you to make development better
We are the independent accountability office of the IDB Group. We manage complaints about possible environmental and social harm arising from Group-financed projects.
MICI BY THE NUMBERS
PUBLICATIONS
Annual Reports
Knowledge Products
MICI Policies and Guidelines
Brochures
Publications of interest
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 Annual Report 20202020 was an unprecedented year for everyone, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. MICI was dedicated to reducing the disruptions in the operation of the mechanism due to the new circumstances, particularly in case management and accessibility. |
 Annual Report 20192019 has been a very dynamic year in all of MICI’s areas —from the receipt and management of requests, to access promotion and learning generation activities, to engagement with peer mechanisms and addressing such vital issues as managing cases involving the risk of reprisals and the modernization of the safeguards framework. |
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 Annual Report 20182018 has served as another link in MICI’s institutional strengthening process, which has allowed it to continue to position itself as a reliable and transparent interlocutor with its counterparts. During the year, 23 complaints were processed: 11 transferred from previous years and 12 new cases — 10 of which referred to IDB projects and two to IDB Invest projects. |
 Annual Report 2017In 2017, the MICI managed a total of 26 Complaints, mainly relating to large infrastructure investments. Our Annual Report accounts for the solid work of MICI’s team members marked by results, both in the mediation of conflicts, and in the recommendations derived from the corresponding verifications. Although challenges remain, it can be affirmed that, in the fundamental issues, the IDB Group now has a robust, responsive, rigorous, and committed mechanism in place. |
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 Annual Report 20162016 was a year of growth in many ways. We welcomed the year with an extended mandate that allows us to now serve the three institutions of the Group: IDB, IIC and MIF. MICI has increased its responsiveness, allowing it to handle more complex cases and offer valuable solutions to the IDB Group. It also contributed to the institution's commitment to sustainable development by generating recommendations that were transformed into institutional learning. Throughout the year, we have sought not only to fulfill our mandate, but to do so in a better way each time by being more systematic, rigorous, and transparent. This report provides an account of the main activities carried out and the results that have been achieved |
 Annual Report 20152015 was the culmination of a three-year transition period for the MICI and the beginning of a new phase of operations, in which a new operational structure and procedures were adopted. These, in turn, introduced more rigorous requirements for the processing of Requests and greater transparency in the accountability work of the Mechanism. MICI also faced a new challenge in 2015, as at the end of the year its institutional mandate and scope were significantly broadened when it became the accountability mechanism for the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC). |
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 2014 Annual ReportOne of the most important milestones of 2014 was the approval of the new MICI Policy by the Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on December 17, 2014 after 18 months of intense work, which entered into force immediately after its approval. The new Policy gave the Mechanism an updated operating structure and established a revised process for the receipt and processing of Requests that represents a profound exercise in organizational reengineering. |
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 2013 Annual ReportAt the end of 2013, the Independent Consultation and Investigation Mechanism (ICIM) finished the pilot period established in its Policy, approved by the Board of Executive Directors in February 2010, 40 months after its launch in September of that year. |
 2012 Annual ReportDuring 2012, the Independent Consultation and Investigation Mechanism (ICIM) carried out a range of activities and reached a number of important milestones. The IDB Board of Executive Directors’ strong support for the ICIM was made clear by its acceptance of all the recommendations in the ICIM Panel’s first Compliance Review Report for the Pando-Monte Lirio Hydroelectric Program (PN-MICI001-2010). In terms of Request and Case Management, the workload for the year included receiving 20 new Requests, of which two were registered. |
 2011 Annual ReportThe first full calendar year of ICIM operation was intense and dynamic for the MICI Team. In 2011, its second year of operation, the MICI received 22 Requests, twice as many as in 2010. |
 2010 Annual ReportThe MICI started operations in 2010 as part of Bank's efforts to increase transparency, accountability and effectiveness of operations and projects. Since its creation, it has received 11 applications from citizens of six countries. |
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
MICI Reflections: Discuss, Inform or Involve? Community consultations and Access to information under MICI's analysis
This note systematizes some of the lessons derived from the various investigations conducted by MICI's Compliance Review Phase. Specifically, this note focuses on two of the most common issues arising in compliance review reports: access to information and prior consultation to affected communities. Therefore, it contains highly valuable information on the implementation of the environmental and social policies of the IDB Group.
MICI Reflections: Agreements to improve lives
This series showcases various cases managed by MICI's Consultation Phase and highlights the lessons learnt during the dispute resolution process, the key facts about the case, and the main outcomes of the dialogue between the parties involved.
1. Costa Rica: MICI’s experience with the Reventazón hydroelectric project
2. Bariloche, Argentina: The power of dialogue in the transformation of a tourist center
3. Ecuador: Beyond Agreements: The Importance of Timing in Dispute Resolution
MICI Reflexiones: Investigations that generate change
This series draws lessons learned from the investigations carried out by MICI's Compliance Review Phase and analyzes how these processes have contributed to generating changes in the IDB Group's operational policies and standards, strengthening its commitment to social and environmental sustainability of the projects financed in Latin America and the Caribbean.
1. México - Mareña Renovables: Reinforcing the “meaningful” in “meaningful consultations”
2. Paraguay - Metrobus: a milestone in economic displacement management
3. Chile - A new approach towards gender issues: lessons learnt in Alto Maipo
Online Mediation and Social Conflict
What are the long-term transformations of online mediation for the resolution of socio-environmental disputes, two years after the outbreak of COVID-19? This note presents us with some considerations that are based both on day-today experience and on the first scientific evidence that has emerged to date, in the context of Latin America and the Caribbean, in which disputes often take place in a context of easily ignitable social conflicts.
Addressing controversies in contexts of high polarization and risk of reprisals
This note explores seven approaches to be taken into account in dispute resolution to promote avenues of solution under the Do No Harm principle. This publication forms part of the knowledge products prepared in the framework of the tenth anniversary of MICI.
Promoting Best Practices: The External Consultative Group Contributions and Lessons Learned from the Perspective of its Members
On the occasion of MICI’s tenth anniversary, this note describes the experience of the first members of the GCE who served from 2017 to 2019 and outlines key elements of the GCE’s role, examples of its contributions, and lessons learned.
Guidance Note for Accessible and Secure Remote Case Management
This document provides guidance on how to manage a MICI Request, as normally as possible, during a Remote Environment Contingency, such as the COVID 19 pandemic, in which all case-related meetings, events, dialogue sessions, interviews, and communications must happen remotely using digital tools. This publication forms part of the knowledge products prepared in the framework of the tenth anniversary of MICI.
Consultation Phase 2010-2019: Nine years of experience in dispute resolution
An analysis of the complaints managed under the Consultation Phase, their outcomes, and the dispute resolution tools used to address the issues.
Analysis of the Request Portfolio 2010-2017
From September 2010 to December 2017, MICI received 128 Requests, of which 122 were related to IDB projects, four to MIF projects, and two to IDB Invest projects. Presented herein is the first analytical approach to the Requests received since the beginning of MICI’s operations, which is intended to serve as a general context note and the first analytical document of the MICI Reflections Program.
Analysis of the Request Portfolio- at a glance
Summary of the first Knowledge product ”Analysis of the Request Portfolio 2010-2017” of the MICI Reflections Program.
MICI-BID Policy
The MICI Policy was approved by the Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on December 17, 2014 and supersedes the Policy establishing the Independent Consultation and Investigation Mechanism (GN-1830-49).
MICI-IDB Invest Policy
As of January 1, 2016, the MICI also receives complaints related to operations financed by the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) based on this Policy approved on December 15, 2015.
Transition Plan
This document responds to the request of the Board of Executive Directors to prepare a plan to assist the Bank in achieving an efficient transition from the 2010 Policy to the 2014 Policy.
Guidelines for the Consultation Phase
Guidelines for processing any Request in MICI’s Consultation Phase for any of the institutions belonging to the IDB Group.
Guidelines for addressing risk of reprisals in complaint management
The Guidelines for addressing risk of reprisals are intended to facilitate the effective application of the MICI Policies in cases where Requesters, their relatives, associates, or case management support staff express that there is risk of reprisals for having resorted to the Mechanism, or because there is pre-existing risk that may be aggravated by the fact that they chose to do so.
Booklet for Complainants
What is MICI? How does the MICI process work? How to file a complaint? This booklet introduces MICI and provides useful information on how to file a complaint related to projects funded by any of the institutions of the Inter-American Development Bank Group.
A Guide for Independent Accountability Mechanisms on Measures to Address the Risks of Reprisals in Complaint Management: A Practical Toolkit
This publication commissioned by MICI is a practical tool to assist independent accountability mechanisms (IAMs) address the risk of reprisals within the context of their complaint management process. This product provides general guidance and an array of tools and resources for IAMs to learn about and use as relevant. (Also available in Spanish).
Glass Half Full Report
To what extent are IAMs and the DFIs that administer them effective in providing remedy for human rights harm to complainants? This research evaluates the policies and practices of 11 IAMs and corresponding DFIs from the perspective of the users – both those people who have been directly affected by the DFI-financed activities and have filed complaints to the IAMs (complainants), and the civil society organisations that support them.
Brochure about the MICI, by Somo
This brochure provides a brief overview of the work of the IDB Independent Consultation and Investigation Mechanism (MICI) and its procedure to file a complaint. Civil society organisations, workers, communities and groups of individuals who are harmed by a Bank project can use the MICI to address their grievance. This brochure briefly explains how.
IAMNetwork – Participation Criteria and Principles for Cooperation
The Independent Accountability Mechanisms (IAMs) Network seeks to identify and foster means for collaboration, cooperation and knowledge sharing amongst these institutions.