"Bank implicated in Kenya Maasai eviction"

The World Bank has been accused of breaching its own safeguards through its investment in a Kenya electricity expansion project. The $1.39 billion project comprises a $330 million Bank contribution and includes the development of a geothermal power plant, Olkaria IV, which led to the relocation of Maasai communities. This includes the construction of Olkaria IV, a geothermal power plant aiming to deliver 280 MW to the Kenyan grid, implemented by Kenya’s state owned power producer KenGen.

Maurice Ouma Odhiambo, of Kenyan based NGO Jamaa Resource Initiatives, said that the Bank has failed to “closely monitor the resettlement process for the project”. In October 2014 Maasai leaders submitted a confidential request to the Bank’s accountability mechanism, the Inspection Panel (IP), alleging that the resettlement led to “impoverishment, intra-community disputes, and health concerns”.