A Responsible Institution
How the EIB Group ensures accountability within the organisation
We are transparent in our activities, policies and operations. We comply with applicable laws and our strict internal regulations. We engage with our stakeholders when developing key policies. We actively promote the rights to access to information, to public consultation and participation and to remedy at project level. Accountability mechanisms and standards are in place to ensure that our investments are managed in an integral and responsible way.
Furthermore, the EIB requires those we finance to establish and maintain project-level grievance mechanisms, which constitute critical means for the early identification and remedy of undesirable or unforeseen impacts and concerns arising from the execution of a project. Such mechanisms promote affected persons’ access to remedy and may facilitate resolution of concerns that arise out of the project’s scope. Access to the project-level grievance mechanism does not replace or impede the subsequent access to other redress mechanisms, such as arbitration procedures, judicial, administrative or extrajudicial means of complaint.
Aside from our day-to-day operations, we are committed to working for the common good by supporting a range of social, educational and cultural initiatives.
Transparency and accountability
As the EU bank, we strive to be exemplary in terms of the transparency and accountability of our work. We proactively publish information and engage with our stakeholders. Mutual benefits are provided by the involvement of stakeholders such as civil society organisations in our activities. Transparency improves the effectiveness and sustainability of policies and strategies along with the operations we finance, and it increases our accountability towards all our stakeholders. Transparency therefore helps us to deliver better results and build trust.
Compliance and integrity
Compliance and integrity are integral elements of corporate culture at the EIB Group. They are the shared responsibility of all EIB Group staff and members of the governing bodies. Ethical and compliant behaviour is embedded in the relevant policies, procedures, practices.
Complaints Mechanism
As part of our understanding of accountability towards society, the EIB Group has a Complaints Mechanism in place that enables stakeholders to raise their concerns about EIB Group-financed operations. The mechanism helps to facilitate and handle complaints against the EIB Group by individuals, organisations and corporations impacted by EIB Group activities. Complaints may be made about arrangements for involvement of affected communities, access to information, the environmental and social impact of projects, procurement procedures, human resources issues, and any other aspect of the planning, implementation or impact of EIB Group operations.
Stakeholder engagement
The EIB has three levels of stakeholder engagement. Firstly, the EIB Group engages with civil society and builds cooperative relations with its representatives at the corporate level. Our annual meeting between civil society organisations and members of the EIB’s Board of Directors and Management Committee is the main opportunity for civil society to discuss policy orientations directly with the EIB’s governing bodies. The 2017 meeting of the Board of Directors with civil society representatives was held on 30 January, with approximately 65 participants from 56 organisations coming to the EIB headquarters in Luxembourg.
Walking the talk
The EIB Group has now been measuring and managing carbon emissions from its own operations at Group level for ten years. In addition to energy (natural gas for heating and power generation, purchased electricity, and steam for power) and waste emissions, we also measure and manage our mobility emissions (business travel, employee commuting with own vehicles, etc.).
Community Engagement
The EIB Institute was set up within the Bank to promote and support social, cultural and academic initiatives with European stakeholders and the public at large. It is a key pillar of the EIB Group’s community and citizenship engagement.
Employer with a mission
Our staff is a key component of the successful delivery of our mission to foster sustainable growth within the EU and abroad. The EIB Group achieves its goals thanks to more than 3,600 highly qualified and diverse employees from all 28 EU Member States who work in a dynamic, multicultural environment that fosters collaboration, innovation and personal growth through exposure to a variety of different projects.