Canadian Appointed to the World Bank's Inspection Panel ( August 1 ,1997 )

CONTACT: Eduardo G. Abbott

Telephone: (202) 458-2617

Washington, August 1, 1997- Mr. Jim MacNeill, a Canadian national, was today appointed by the World Bank Executive Directors for a five year term as a member of the independent Inspection Panel. He replaces Mr. Richard E. Bissell, who has concluded his non-renewable three year term. The other members of the Inspection Panel are Messrs. Ernst-Günther Bröder, and Alvaro Umaña Quesada- who effective today is the Chairman for the forthcoming year.

The Inspection Panel--an unprecedented international body--was created in 1993 to provide an independent forum to private citizens who believe they or their interests have been or could be harmed by a project financed by the World Bank. Such groups of project affected people may now present their concerns in a Request for Inspection to the Panel. Since it began operations in September 1994, the Panel has received ten formal Requests for Inspection.

Mr. MacNeill is a policy advisor on the environment, energy, management, and sustainable development to international organizations, governments, and industry. He is member of the boards of the Woods Hole Research Center, the Wuppertal Institute on Climate and Energy Policy, the Environmental Education and Training Institute of North America, and Ontario Hydro. He was Secretary General of the World Commission on the Environment and Development (the Brundtland Commission) and a major author of the Commission's world-acclaimed report, "Our Common Future". He served for seven years as Director of Environment for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Earlier, he was a deputy minister in the Government of Canada. Mr. MacNeill holds a graduate diploma in Economics and Political Science from the University of Stockholm and Bachelor's Degrees in Science (Math and Physics) and Mechanical Engineering from Saskatchewan.

For more information on the Inspection Panel, please visit our website:http://www.worldbank.org (search "Inspection Panel") or call the World Bank Public Information Center (202) 458-5454.