World Bank Group Engagement in Public-Private Partnerships : Strengthening Sustainable Finance in International Investment Standards

Abstract: The prioritisation of private funds in financing public infrastructures due to limited financial resources available through the public sector has raised concerns about the protection of human rights and environment considering that the main goal of corporations is to generate as much profit as possible. The presence of the World Bank Group in the mix is to strike a balance between these competing needs by introducing the concept of sustainable finance through technical assistance and the adoption of standards that are integrated with the concept to influence the behaviour of state and non-state actors in their investment practices, especially in the developing world. This study employs a legal doctrinal approach in providing a critical analysis on the authoritativeness of the instruments adopted by the World Bank Group based on the established doctrines to derive logical conclusions from primary and secondary sources. It enquires into the work of the World Bank Group to explain the potential acceptance of the concept of sustainable finance and its impacts in infrastructure development and international investment law. This study found that the interactions established in the arrangement of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) among all various actors in international law is the key to internalise the concept of sustainable finance since it could form a community of legal practice adhering to the same standards. Furthermore, the compatibility between the standards adopted by the World Bank Group and the provisions found in the traditional sources of international law on human rights and environment could improve state and non-state actors’ compliance with those existing norms.