World Bank tells clients to use their own environmental rules, if they are good enough

The World Bank is now willing to accept a client country's own environmental and social rules for projects it funds. This means countries can use their existing systems instead of always adopting the Bank's specific standards.

For decades, the World Bank imposed its own environmental and social standards on every project it funded. This often meant countries had to build parallel systems or adapt their own laws to fit the Bank's requirements. Now, the Bank says it will accept a country's existing rules if they meet the Bank's objectives, which could speed up project approvals and reduce administrative burden for borrowing nations.